


One Way ||| Ateez

by flamewhipper



Series: My Way Trilogy [3]
Category: ATEEZ (Band)
Genre: Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Knotting, M/M, Manipulation, Mating, Minor Character Death, Mpreg, Omega Verse, Smut, Violence, War, old enemies
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-01
Updated: 2020-09-04
Packaged: 2021-03-05 20:48:25
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 47
Words: 108,271
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25641586
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/flamewhipper/pseuds/flamewhipper
Summary: The 3rd book of the My Way SeriesThe story continues for our family of 8, now 14 strong.Just when they think they will be at peace, a new enemy makes themselves known and threatens the safety of the pack. And one member could be taken from them forever...
Relationships: Choi Jongho/Jeong Yunho, Choi San/Jung Wooyoung, Kang Yeosang/Kim Hongjoong, Park Seonghwa/Song Mingi
Series: My Way Trilogy [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1758910
Comments: 28
Kudos: 119





	1. Character Review

**Author's Note:**

> Hello my lovely readers! Welcome to part three of the My Way series! I just want to take this moment to thank everyone for making it this far <3 And I hope you're ready for another whirlwind adventure!! This book was never actually supposed to happen, but a lot of my readers on Wattpad begged me to continue the story, so after a lot of planning this is what I came up with! And I am so very proud of it <3 I hope you enjoy! Comments and kudos is always appreciated <3
> 
> **I do not own any of the following images. They were all edited by me to be used as references for my characters. All credit goes to the original owners**

**Hongjoong**  
~Head Alpha  
~Soulmates with Yeosang  
~Father of Riley  
~~Entire pack died during pack war  
~~Commpasionate and Trusting  
~~Survived mating bond breaking when Yeosang was forced to drink a potion that burned mark away  
~~Kidnapped by San's family and taken to Alpha Pack  
~~Almost died from knife wound when held hostage by Alpha Pack and used as bait  
~~Helped free betas and omegas from Alpha Pack  
~~Helped San find Winter Snowbell for potion for Wooyoung  
~~Stayed behind to take care of the kids when rest of the pack attacked Ultima

**Yeosang**  
~Beta  
~Soulmates with Hongjoong  
~Mother of Riley  
~~Entire pack died during pack war  
~~Love having a large family  
~~Taken by Alpha Pack to be used as a Breeder and assigned an alpha  
~~Survived mating mark being burned away  
~~Kidnapped by San's family but manages to escape  
~~Helps convince Colonel Gregson (Leader of Hunters) to help free his pack from Alpha Pack  
~~Helped free betas and omegas from Alpha Pack  
~~Took several years to get pregnant  
~~Stayed behind to take care of kids when rest of pack attacked Ultima 

**Mingi**  
~Alpha  
~Mated to Seonghwa  
~Father of Avayla and Gunner  
~~ Son of head alpha of Alpha Pack  
~~Willingly left pack to find his own way  
~~Forcibly claimed Seonghwa as his  
~~Joined Hongjoong's pack to try and make Seonghwa happy  
~~Taken prisoner by Alpha Pack and forced to drink potion that turned him against his family  
~~Tricked to leave Alpha Pack by Jongho and Yunho  
~~Earned mating mark from Seonghwa  
~~Got Seonghwa pregnant, revealed to them by Lizbeth (Alpha they met at a settlement)  
~~Kidnapped by San's family, but managed to escape  
~~Helps convince Colonel Gregson to help free his pack from Alpha Pack  
~~Freed Seonghwa and stayed back to protect him while Hunter's and his pack fought Alpha Pack  
~~Introduces two betas, Maria and Kenneth, to pack and Maria becomes their midwife  
~~Helps bring Winter Snowbell, San and Hongjoong pack home  
~~Takes Yunho and Jongho with him to find Seonghwa after he is kidnapped  
~~Meet two betas, Tina and Marylou while looking for Ultima  
~~Calls Colonel Gregson for help to attack Ultima   
~~Battles and kills Lance (old friend) to free Seonghwa  
~~Thinks Seonghwa has been impregnated by Lance, later to be revealed by Maria that the baby is his

**Seonghwa**  
~Omega  
~Mated to Mingi  
~Mother of Avayla and Gunner  
~~Raised by alpha family, all killed in pack war  
~~Forcibly claimed by Mingi  
~~Bonds with Yeosang when they become one pack  
~~Kidnapped by Alpha Pack, but manages to escape after attacking Lance  
~~Stays close by to free Mingi  
~~Mates with Mingi to free him from his father's control, also because he discovers he loves him  
~~Finds out he's pregnant after meeting Lizbeth  
~~Kidnapped by San's family and taken to Alpha Pack  
~~Held separately because Mingi's father, Alistar, wants to raise the pup to take over Alpha Pack  
~~Rescued by Wooyoung and Mingi, flees with Mingi to protect the baby  
~~Helps in selecting Maria to be midwife for pack  
~~Kidnapped by Lance when doing a border run  
~~Raped by Lance, who wants to get back at Mingi for 'betraying' him, then finds out he is pregnant  
~~Helps distracts Lance so Mingi can kill him  
~~Finds out from Maria that the baby is really Mingi's

**Jongho**  
~Alpha, 2nd in command  
~Mated to Yunho  
~Father of Theo  
~~Abandoned by pack after pack war because he was wounded  
~~Found by Yunho and ends up mating with him  
~~Helped Yunho bring Wooyoung back to the cave they were staying in  
~~Mated with Wooyoung to protect him from San  
~~Accepted San into pack after they discover Hunters are after them  
~~Stay with Hongjoong's pack after they recover from alpha attack  
~~Joins Hongjoong's pack after they are threatened by Alpha Pack  
~~Has mating bond with Wooyoung break after missing his heat  
~~When reunited with Yunho and Wooyoung, wants San to mate with Wooyoung instead  
~~Helps free Mingi from Alpha Pack  
~~Kidnapped by San's family and taken to Alpha Pack  
~~Nearly killed from two knife wounds when being held by Alpha Pack and being used as bait  
~~Fights in final battle with Alistar  
~~Discovers Yunho is pregnant  
~~Heartbroken when Wooyoung and San leave the pack  
~~Goes with Mingi to rescue Seonghwa  
~~Works with Tina, Marylou, and Colonel Gregson to attack Ultima  
~~Helps fight Lance until Yunho is wounded and takes him from battle  
~~Helps nurse Yunho back to health and supports Maria's advise for Yunho to take a potion that will make him sterile

**Yunho**  
~Beta  
~Mated to Jongho  
~Mother of Theo  
~~Grew up with Wooyoung, best friend  
~~Willingly left pack (Primera) after not agreeing with how they treated Wooyoung  
~~Found a wounded Jongho and felt the need to help him  
~~Realized how lonely he was and mated with Jongho once he was better  
~~Sensed Wooyoung and found him wounded in the forest  
~~Ok with Jongho mating with Wooyoung because he didn't want him to be unprotected  
~~Wounded in fight with random alphas  
~~Gets separated from pack with Wooyoung after attack from Alpha Pack  
~~Held in human wolf sanctuary with wild wolves and has to defend Wooyoung when his heat hits  
~~Chan sacrifices himself after getting attacked by Alpha Pack  
~~Rescued by San  
~~Helps free Mingi from Alpha Pack  
~~Kidnapped by San's family and manages to escape  
~~Fights and kills San's brother Jasper  
~~Finds out from Seonghwa that he is pregnant  
~~Doesn't agree with Wooyoung and San leaving the pack, but doesn't fight them on it  
~~Goes with Mingi and Jongho to save Mingi  
~~Works with Tina, Marylou, and Colonel Gregson to attack Ultima  
~~Kidnapped and tortured by San's parents  
~~Allowed to see Seonghwa and ends up killing San's father  
~~Wounded when protecting Seonghwa from Lance  
~~Decides to take a potion made by Maria to make him sterile, as his back wound could make pregnancy dangerous for him and the baby

**Wooyoung**  
~Omega  
~Soulmates with San  
~Mother of Lizbeth and Lorelai   
~~Grew up with best friend, Yunho, at Primera  
~~Mated to alpha named Chan  
~~Born with rare disease that makes it so he is unable to get pregnant  
~~Told Chan died during pack war and was forced to drink potion that burned away mating mark before being chased out of pack because he can't get pregnant  
~~Taken in by Yunho and Jongho  
~~Mates with Jongho  
~~Separated from pack with Yunho after they are attacked by Alpha Pack  
~~Taken by humans to a wild wolf sanctuary and goes through heat without Jongho  
~~Meets Chan again while trying to find pack  
~~Chan sacrifices himself to save Wooyoung from alphas from Alpha Pack.  
~~Rescued by San  
~~Mates with San, discovering they are Soulmates  
~~Meets Lizbeth, who could be distantly related and feels connection with her, discovers she had heard of possible cure for his disease, as she has same one  
~~Kidnapped by San's family and taken to Alpha Pack  
~~Raped several times by San's brothers  
~~Rescuses Seonghwa with Mingi  
~~Lizbeth sacrifices herself to protect him from Alistar  
~~Fights in final battle with Alistar and kills him  
~~Decides to leave with San to search for a cure  
~~Finds Ultima, another ancient pack, and discovers a cure  
~~Has to flee and gets stuck in wolf form  
~~Maria helps break the spell and agrees to make the cure for him, with warning that it could be fatal  
~~Meets up with Mingi, Jongho, and Yunho to free Seonghwa  
~~Kidnapped and tortured by San's parents and nearly burned alive by San's mom  
~~Finds out he isn't from Primera, but is long lost descendant of omega rulers of Ultima (used to be ruled by omegas instead of alphas)  
~~Rejects their pleas to stay behind and rule  
~~Takes the cure, nearly kills him, but it works and discovers he is pregnant  
  


**San**  
~Alpha  
~Soulmates with Wooyoung   
~Father of Lizbeth and Lorelai  
~~Abandoned as a pup by his family, learned to survive on his own  
~~Drawn to Wooyoung immediately  
~~Joins Jongho's pack when threatened by Hunter's, wanting to protect Wooyoung  
~~Leads them to Hongjoong's pack by following Mingi's scent  
~~When pack is separated by attack from Alpha Pack, he leaves to go find Wooyoung and Yunho  
~~Given permission to mate with Wooyoung by Jongho, discovers they are soulmates  
~~Kidnapped by his own family and taken to Alpha Pack  
~~Forced to listen to Wooyoung being raped by his brothers  
~~Fights twin brother Caius and leaves him to die after breaking both arms and legs  
~~Leaves with Wooyoung to go find cure for his disease  
~~Finds Ultima and accidentally kills head alpha's son, forcing them to flee  
~~Stuck in wolf form  
~~Goes with Hongjoong to find Winter Snowbell for Wooyoung's cure  
~~With Maria's help, the spell is broken and he is returned to human form  
~~Meets up with Mingi, Jongho, and Yunho to help free Seonghwa  
~~Fights his mother and watches her burn alive after freeing Wooyoung  
~~Helps Wooyoung go through cure and discovers it works and Wooyoung is pregnant

**Avayla**  
~Alpha  
~Daughter of Mingi and Seonghwa  
~Sister of Gunner  
~~Takes after her father, can be very hot headed  
~~Very protective of Theo, even since they were kids  
~~Fights with her brother a lot  
~~Helps to set a good example for Lizbeth and Lorelai

**Theo**  
~Beta  
~Son of Jongho and Yunho  
~~Born deaf, only talks through pack link  
~~Bonded with Avayla as infants  
~~Takes after Yunho, very gentle  
~~Tries to be a good big brother for everyone

**Riley**  
~Alpha  
~Son of Hongjoong and Yeosang  
~~Takes after Hongjoong, being trained to be a head alpha  
~~Best friends with Gunner

**Gunner**  
~Alpha  
~Son of Mingi and Seonghwa  
~Brother of Avayla  
~~Named for Colonel Gregson (G for Gregson, rest is to symbolize the weapons Hunters use)  
~~Fights with his sister a lot  
~~Also takes after Mingi, very dominant  
~~Best friends with Riley 

**Lizbeth & Lorelai**  
~Omegas  
~Daughters of San and Wooyoung  
~~Identical twins except for their eyes: Lizbeth has gold flecks in her eyes  
~~Lizbeth is named for the alpha that sacrificed herself for Wooyoung  
~~Very shy and timid  
~~Look up to Avayla

  
  



	2. 1

"Alright 'Mam... Enemy is in sight. How do you want to proceed?"

"Carefully. We can't alert them to our presence."

"Roger that. Stay low to the ground, we can't risk them seeing us."

Two wolves, one black and one red, wrestled in the clearing in front of them. They snapped at each other and the red one whimpered when the black one bit his ear.

"Approaching target. Slowly..."

"Attack on my command."

A larger brown and tan wolf trotted over to them and nudged them apart, growling slightly as if scolding them. The two younger ones huffed and started to walk away, still nipping at each other.

"Targets are on the move. Hold your position."

The brown wolf shook his head and followed after the other two.

"Ok, get ready. In three..."

"Two..."

"ONE!"

Avayla and Hongjoong jumped out of the trees and threw the buckets of water in their hands over the three wolves in front of them.

Both Gunner and Riley yelped and spun around, their eyes flashing red for a brief moment before they realized who it was that had surprised them.

Theo jumped a couple feet off the ground and whimpered, his tail going between his legs as he glared up at Avayla, eyes changing to a bright sapphire blue.

Hongjoong watched as she ran to his side. "Oh baby, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to hit you." She forced through her giggles, which was a dead giveaway that he had been exactly who she was aiming for.

He huffed and turned his back on her before licking the water off his paws.

"Theooooo." Avayla whined before hugging him from behind. The beta let out a small growl, but Hongjoong could see the smile tugging at his lips. There was no way he could say no to his Soulmate.

"Alright kids, shift back and we will go over what just happened." Hongjoong said, moving to sit on a nearby rock.

Once all three were human and dressed, he crossed his arms and gave them a stern look. "What did you do wrong?"

"We weren't using our senses." Riley answered quickly, sitting up a little straighter when he earned a smile from his dad.

"Oh come on, we are on our territory! We should be allowed to have a little fun and relax." Gunner said, crossing his arms and glaring at the other boy. "And stop sucking up to Uncle Joong."

"Like you don't suck up to your dad!" Riley growled, shoving the other young alpha.

"I do not!"

"You do too!" Avayla said, shooting daggers at her brother. "All. The. Time."

"It's not my fault dad is a pushover when it comes to me." Gunner stuck his tongue out, making Avayla growl and her eyes flash red.

Theo rolled his eyes and took her hand, calming her down instantly.

"Ok, ok. Everyone settle down." Hongjoong said, holding his hands up. Being head alpha could sure be trying sometimes. "Now you are both correct, to an extent. You always need to keep your senses going in the background, even when we are in our territory because you never know when a threat could appear. But yes, Gunner, you are also correct because we can be a little more relaxed while on our territory."

Both boys beamed and kept watching Hongjoong. His heart swelled with pride. "Now run inside and clean up. Dinner will be ready soon."

Gunner was up in an instant, running past his sister and yanking her platinum blonde hair as he passed her.

"You brat!" Avayla yelled, pushing off the ground to chase after him.

Theo hurried after her, a worried look on his face and Hongjoong was sure he was yelling at her through their personal link to calm down.

"I promise I'm not going to be like that Dad." Riley said, coming over to hug Hongjoong.

The alpha wrapped his arms around his son and kissed the top of his head. "I know love, you got my mellow personality."

"Both you and Mama are mellow." Riley giggled, and took his dad's hand as they walked back to the house.

"That's true." Hongjoong said, glancing back at the pack house. He sensed his mate was uncomfortable so he squeezed his son's hand. "Come on, Mama needs us."

The two of them jogged up the back steps and into their large, log home and Hongjoong turned to where Yeosang was easing himself onto the couch.

The beta smiled at him and rolled his eyes. "I knew you were going to show up. I can manage getting up and down on my own Joongie."

"I know that." Hongjoong said with a slight pout as he moved to help Yeosang sit. Then he kneeled and rubbed the beta's swollen belly. "I just wanted to say hi to my other son."

"Well Rhodey is sleeping right now so shoo!" Yeosang said, swatting at Hongjoong's head.

The alpha growled at him but respected his beta's wishes and backed away. "You're so moody. Do you not love me anymore?" He huffed, crossing his arms.

Yeosang just hummed and nodded while closing his eyes and leaning his head back on the couch.

"Sangie..." Hongjoong said with a slight whine.

"Mama why are being mean to Dad?" Riley asked, sitting on the couch and smiling up at Yeosang.

Yeosang opened one of his eyes and smirked. "Because Dad is the one who gave me this pain in my back." He said, pulling Riley into a hug. The boy giggled and placed a hand on Yeosang's stomach and smiled.

Hongjoong huffed and started tapping his foot while glaring at his mate.

"How long until my brother gets here?" Riley asked, looking up at Hongjoong with excited eyes. Golden brown, just like Yeosang's.

The alpha felt his façade fading as he saw Yeosang smiling too. "Three months baby." Hongjoong said, moving to sit on Riley's other side. The eleven year old smiled and rested his head on Yeosang's stomach and closed his eyes.

Yeosang and Hongjoong glanced at each other. Neither of them needed to speak to know that the other was excited to have another baby.

The older leaned over and kissed the side of Yeosang's head, then rubbed his nose back and forth.

.

.

.

.

"MOM!"Avayla's shout came from down the hall and Seonghwa sighed, already knowing what was going to happen. That was her 'Gunner is pissing me off' tone.

"What's the matter?" He asked, not looking up from the laundry he was folding.

"Would you tell Gunner to **stop pulling my hair!** " His daughter snapped as she stormed into the room.

Her brother could be heard laughing from his room before the door slammed

"Ava." Seonghwa said, his tone low with warning. "You need to be nice to your brother. He's only eleven. You were a handful yourself at that age young lady."

"But Mama!" Avayla said, going to step forward, but Theo entered the room, drawing Seonghwa's attention.

_Hello Theo._

_Hi Uncle Hwa._ Theo stepped forward into Seonghwa's waiting arms. It was just like hugging Yunho. They were about the same height, although Theo was a little lankier. _Is she giving you a run for your money today?_

_MAMA!_ Avayla chimed in while stomping the ground and crossing her arms.

Theo laughed, one of the few times he ever made any sound, and turned to look at Avayla with nothing but pure admiration in his eyes. _Never_.

Seonghwa watched as his daughter's anger faded instantly and she stepped forward and pulled him into a hug. Theo had to bend over a little, but the low purr he let out when Avayla nuzzled her mating mark on his neck always put the biggest smile on his face.

"Feeling better?" Seonghwa asked, chuckling a little when Avayla turned bright red.

She chose to ignore the statement and pulled Theo from the room.

"You can come out now." Seonghwa called, smiling as he heard grumbling coming from the closet.

Mingi stepped out and immediately wrapped his arms around his omega's waist and shoved his nose into his neck.

"You're such a baby." The omega sighed, reaching up to pat Mingi's head. "I'm sure they knew you were in there the entire time."

"Yeah well at least I didn't have to see it." He muttered into his mate's neck. "They need to work more on keeping it under wraps."

"Why, because you're so good at doing that yourself?" Seonghwa asked, arching an eyebrow. "I seem to remember you not being able to stop scenting me when we first met San."

Mingi's growled in response and hugged Seonghwa tighter. "It's different."

Seonghwa just rolled his eyes because there would be no winning the argument with him. But that's one of the things Seonghwa loved about his crazy, possessive alpha.

And deep down Avayla loved him too with all her heart. It just so happened that her Soulmate took precedence now.

"Come on, let's go get started on dinner." Seonghwa said softly, rubbing his cheek back and forth on top of Mingi's head.

.

.

.

.

_I think I smell a deer roasting. We should get back._ Jongho said as he came to a stop. He turned to admire his beta stretching his long limbs next to him before shaking out his fur.

_Great! I'm starving._ Yunho's tail wagged as he glanced at Jongho. _What?_

The alpha extended his neck and licked Yunho's muzzle before nuzzling into the side of his neck. _I'm just happy to see you doing so well as a wolf now. You're stunning._

Yunho whined in response as his ears fell back. _You're such a sap._ He pawed at the ground, pushing a stick around.

Jongho just chuckled and rose up on his hide legs so he could push Yunho to the ground. His beta twisted and nipped playfully at Jongho's legs, but the alpha used his strength to his advantage and pinned Yunho the ground. Then he started to lick Yunho's neck and behind his ears.

His beta closed his eyes as his chest started to rumble a little in appreciation.

Every word Jongho said had been true. He found Yunho perfect in every way, even with the scar that marred his back and had nearly killed him.

Ever since that wound, Jongho did his best to show his appreciation for his mate. Almost loosing him and then nursing him back to health had made Jongho fall even deeper in love with Yunho, and he never wanted to risk losing him like that again.

_Papa?_ Theo's sweet voice broke his thoughts.

_What is it, Son?_ He asked, not sensing any need to worry from his son's tone, so he kept cleaning his mate's fur.

_Uncle Hwa says dinner is ready and you better get back here if you want to eat, or there will be nothing left._ Theo said, with a hint of amusement in his voice.

_We will be there shortly. Make sure to save us something._

_Will do Papa. Ava and I will make some plates for you and Mama._

Jongho hummed and rubbed his nose against Yunho's neck. _I suppose we should get back..._

_I did say that I was hungry_. Yunho chuckled and tried to move.

The alpha let out a playful growl and kept Yunho pinned to the ground while nipping at his ear.

Yunho whined in response and started to twist a little.

Then his stomach growled and Jongho finally got off him while chuckling. _Alright, let's go get you something to eat._

_Finally!_ Yunho said, springing off the ground and leaping forward.

Jongho huffed and bowed his head. _I see where I rate._

His beta turned around and let his tail sway back and forth slowly. _You rate at the top, because the faster we eat, the faster we can sneak away._ He trotted up and nipped at Jongho's neck, then rubbed the entire length of their bodies together.

Jongho felt his entire body shiver in anticipation as he closed his eyes and dug his claws into the ground.

Just when Yunho drew him in, he continued his game and ran toward the pack house, leaving Jongho wanting.

The alpha growled again, chasing after his mate.

.

.

.

.

"Lizbeth, Lorelai! Come take your medicine." Wooyoung called out from the girl's room. He had just finished pouring them each a small glass of the suppressant medication he had discovered in one of the books from Ultima.

He had spent several days learning the language from Maria so he could study the books themselves, and he slowly came to understand why the books were kept hidden. There were a lot of dangerous spells and potions in them.

His twin daughters came running into the room, giggling at some inside joke. "Hi Mama!" They said at the same time.

Wooyoung cupped both of their chins and rubbed his nose against their's one at a time. "How are my babies doing?" He asked as he handed them their medication.

"Good! Daddy helped us through our next book" Lizbeth said, the gold flecks in her eyes getting brighter as she smiled.

"Yeah! He said our reading is getting much better." Lorelai followed.

The two of them downed their drink and handed Wooyoung their cups.

He was so proud of the two of them. They took to being omegas naturally and never threw a fit about taking their suppressants. And they were growing into beautiful girls with gentle souls.

Maria had suggested getting them started early on their medication so it got in their system before they had to worry about heats. With so many alphas in the house, it was advise he took in a heartbeat after all the trouble he's had with his own heat in the past.

The girls knew what a heat was, and what came of it. It was something Wooyoung had started teaching them about as soon as they came out as omegas.

And Maria had been a huge help with her midwife senses. Wooyoung's mentality on being an omega was still a little... skewed... only because of how he was raised. So she jumped in when she could to answer any questions the girls had.

He was planning on taking them out at some point, just the three of them, and maybe Maria or Seonghwa, so they could experience a heat. It would be better for them to go through it in a controlled and a relaxed environment than for them to go through it for the first time in an unfamiliar area.

And Maria had said stopping their medication for one month wouldn't hurt anything.

"That's great! You two are learning so quickly, I'm so proud of you." He said, beaming down at them.

Both girls hugged him, shoving their faces into his stomach, as they giggled.

"Can we go play with Gunner and Riley now?" Lizbeth asked, peering up at Wooyoung.

"After dinner, I think I can smell Uncle Hwa fixing it now." The omega answered, patting his daughter's head. "Why don't you see if he needs any help."

"Ok!" Both girls said before running from the room.

As soon as they were gone, San slipped in and flashed his perfect, dimpled smile at Wooyoung. "Hey beautiful."

Wooyoung blushed and turned to the small fridge they kept in the corner of the room to store the girls' medication in as well as his own. "Hey yourself. Reading went well?" He said, bending forward to reach for his dose.

"Very." San stepped forward and pulled Wooyoung back into his chest. He started kissing the mark on Wooyoung's neck, making the omega shiver and straighten up.

"San..." He whispered, tilting his neck to the side. San's lips on his skin always made him weak at the knees.

"Yes?" His alpha hummed, tightening his grip on Wooyoung and pulling him in closer.

Wooyoung could feel his wolf churning at the contact. "San... Can't..." He gasped as he felt San start to grind his hips a little. Then his bit his lip and whimpered as San started to suck on a spot on his shoulder.

"I know." His alpha teased, suddenly pulling back. "I just like to tease you." He reached out and pinched Wooyoung's ass before giggling and fleeing from the room.

The omega let out a small yelp at the action, then had to reach down to readjust himself before he could leave the room.

If San thought he was getting something later, he was sorely mistaken.

Wooyoung checked himself in the mirror and nodded in satisfaction before he left the room.

A wide smile crossed his face when he saw his entire family seated around the table Kenneth had built for them. Plates were passed around in an organized, but chaotic way as everyone picked out what they wanted to eat.

This was his happiness, right here.

San caught his eye and beamed at him before helping Lorelai cut up her steak into smaller pieces, otherwise she would try to eat it whole.

Avayla passed Theo a bowl of mashed potatoes and refused to give it to him until he gave her a kiss. He happily obliged, planting a kiss on her cheek then pulled her chair closer to his so they were sitting closer together.

Mingi had a stoney look on his face as he made a point to pay attention to what Gunner was saying to Riley, the two boys chatting happily about something.

Hongjoong was fussing over Yeosang, making sure he had enough to eat and was comfortable, while Seonghwa just looked at them and shook his head.

Yunho noticed Wooyoung standing there and waved him over, a bright smile crossing his face before he handed Jongho a plate of meat.

Yes. This is where Wooyoung knew he belonged. This is where he wanted to stay forever. There was nothing more he could ever ask for than his pack, his Soulmate, and his two perfect daughters that were the biggest blessing in his life.


	3. 2

"Are we going to hunt today Daddy?"

Mingi turned to see Avayla skipping up to him with a wide smile on her face. "Yes baby, do you want to round up whoever wants to go? See if the boys want to go at least so they can observe." He reached up and cupped her cheek before she nodded and hurried away.

He returned to flipping through their finance book, trying to calculate how many deer they would need to kill to sell to Kenneth to been in an ok position.

Even all these years later, they still had the same deal set up with the leather worker. And there were a few other merchants in town that they would sell the meat to. It was a nice setup because it meant that none of them had to look at getting an actual job and they could focus on raising the kids.

And every one of them had grow up, or were growing up, into fine young men and women.

"What's the damage?" Hongjoong asked, walking into the office.

"We are still doing ok. I think if we can bring in two to sell, it will be fine for today. And an elk for us. Are you coming?"

Hongjoong sighed and crossed his arms. "Yes. Only because Yeosang is in a mood and doesn't want me around right now."

Mingi chuckled as he punched a few numbers into the calculator in front of him. "I'm sorry."

"Yeah, it sure sounds like it." Hongjoong scoffed and flopped down in his chair. "He wasn't this moody when he was pregnant with Riley."

Mingi looked up and smiled at the pout coming from his alpha. "Every pregnancy is different. And we were in entirely different circumstances while Yeosang was pregnant last time."

"Don't remind me." The older sighed hand rubbed his forehead. 

There was a soft knock at the door and Mingi's wolf churned when Seonghwa walked in. "I hear we are planning a hunting trip?"

Mingi pulled his omega into his arms and smiled. "Yes my love, would you like to join us?"

Seonghwa hummed and nodded. "I'd love to. It's been a hot minute since I've helped with a hunt." A fire filled his eyes as they flashed gold for a second.

"Sounds good, if we can get two more I think we'll be in good shape." Mingi said, closing the account book. "Ava is recruiting now."

His omega nodded and left the room. Mingi and Hongjoong followed shortly after and they made their way to the backyard where they stripped and shifted.

Both alphas sat and waited for the other hunters to appear.

Avayla came trotting around from the front of the house in her white wolf form. She had picked up some of Mingi's coloring, having black speckles covering her.

Theo was close behind, taking after Yunho with a brown coat and white underbelly. He was tall like Yunho's wolf, too, easily towering over Avayla. And yet he dutifully followed behind his alpha, waiting for her orders.

Mingi looked away and huffed, earning a nudge from Hongjoong. He just grumbled in response and stared at the house.

He knew he was being ridiculous. The pair had mated back in April when Theo had turned eighteen. Very much against Mingi's wishes...

They had come up with a whole elaborate plan too. Seonghwa was used to distract Mingi, wanting to go out for a moonlit walk together and get some alone time.

And like the love struck fool he is, Mingi fell for it.

Once he and Seonghwa were out of range, Yunho and Jongho snuck the pair out of the house to an area they had set up in the woods that was protected and out of the way so they could mate.

And as everyone always said, he knew it was coming... But that didn't stop him from being the protective dad he knew he was. And the thought of someone touching his little girl...

Mingi growled and dug his claws into the ground.

Hongjoong nudged him one more time and nipped at his leg in warning.

The younger's ears fell back and he lowered his head to obey his alpha's command.

Seonghwa came out to join them a few minutes later, followed by Jongho and Yunho.

The pair walked up to their son and the three of them rubbed against each other in greeting before Gunner and Riley came running up, tails wagging quickly.

_Alright._ Hongjoong said, looking at everyone in turn. _The goal today is to bring down something big for us, and at least two deer to sell. If we can get more then great, but let's go for two. Seonghwa, you can go with me, Mingi, and the kids to look for us. Avayla and Theo, Jongho and Yunho, you four focus on the deer._

He got nods of agreements and everyone stood and Avayla came over to shove her head into Mingi's neck. _Good luck. And be careful._

_You too._ Mingi purred and closed his eyes as Avayla rubbed against the length of his body before moving to Seonghwa's.

Theo stood off to the side, respectfully looking away from Mingi. The young beta always got nervous around Mingi when Avayla wasn't with him.

Mingi couldn't help but feel a little satisfied with it, but then Jongho let out a low growl, his eyes flashing red.

Sighing, Mingi glanced at Theo. _Good luck kid. Make sure you keep her safe._

Theo perked up and the tip of his tail wagged. _I will, Sir. I promise. You can count on me._

Mingi couldn't help but give in a little when he heard the sincerity of the beta's tone. Especially when he watched Avayla trot over to him and his response was to immediately lick the side of her face before following her into the trees.

_Grumpy fool._ Jongho grumbled as he walked over slowly, but still nuzzled the side of Mingi's face. _You'll get over it one of these days. Good luck._

_You too kid._

_You are not allowed to call me kid anymore._ Jongho grumbled before sulking as he walked away.

Mingi chuckled and joined his omega at the edge of the trees to listen in on what Hongjoong was saying to Gunner and Riley.

_I want you two to observe today. You're not quite big enough to help with the kill, but you're close, so it's time for you to start learning. You are to stay out of the way and out of sight, ok?_

_Yes, Dad._ Riley nodded and glanced at Gunner with a happy expression.

Mingi could feel the excitement rolling off his son and sat next to him, placing a large paw on his forehead. _Try to keep yourself calm out there, you don't want to alert the prey._ He said while ruffling his son's fur.

_Daaaaad. I know!_ Gunner huffed, yanking his head aside.

Seonghwa immediately hurried over and licked the top of his head to get his fur back into place.

Gunner whined and went to hide behind Riley. _Would you two stop it? I'm not a kid anymore!_

_Yes you are!_ Avayla chimed in over the pack link.

_Ava focus on your own hunt honey._ Seonghwa scolded, going to stand behind Mingi.

_Yes Mama..._

Hongjoong let out a heavy sigh before motioning for everyone to follow him.

The group of five picked their way through the forest carefully. Mingi took the lead, using his senses to pick up any movement from any direction, while Hongjoong took up the rear as the head alpha always does.

Gunner and Riley did very well. They stayed as quiet as they could and kept close to Seonghwa. It was actually Riley who had them stop the first time when he sensed something to the east.

Mingi trusted his intuition and walked slowly in that direction.

Sure enough, there was a large bull elk grazing in a small clearing. He was big enough to feed the pack for almost two weeks.

_Good job Riley._ Mingi said, glancing at the young alpha.

Riley nodded, working hard to stay serious as he nudged Gunner's shoulder and moved them off to the side to hide in a clump of bushes.

_Mingi, you take the left. Seonghwa, the right. Whoever has the cleaner shot, try to take him down. I'll stay along the outside to keep it from escaping._ Hongjoong said, glancing at the couple.

Their head alpha knew he wasn't big enough to try and take down the elk himself, but he was quick and could startle the creature and slow it down if it tried to escape.

Seonghwa licked Mingi's muzzle a couple of times before trotting carefully in an arch around the elk to get into position.

Mingi started to advance forward, keeping low to the ground and in the shadows. He was already planning on distracting the elk so Seonghwa could try and go in for the kill since he had been so excited about coming out to hunt.

So when he got close enough, he called out to his omega _. Are you in position?_

_Yes._

_Get ready._ Mingi gave Seonghwa five seconds before he pressed his paw into a branch in the ground, making it snap.

The elk's head flew up and looked in his direction. The grass was log enough that Mingi knew it couldn't see him, but he still froze and didn't even breathe.

Twisting its ears in all directions, the elk's eyes widened as it scented the air.

It lifted a leg up, prepared to move.

Mingi broke another branch and the elk tensed, still trying to figure out where the sound was coming from.

Its hesitation was its mistake.

Seonghwa leapt out of the tall grass and latched itself onto the side of the elk's neck. The animal panicked and tried to throw Seonghwa aside by flinging its head back and forth, but Seonghwa had a good grip on him.

Mingi took this moment to run forward. He slid under the animal's deadly antlers and popped up underneath it, making the elk cry out in alarm and fall to its side.

He then spun around and used his weight to pin the elk to the ground while Seonghwa snarl and whipped his head back and forth. Blood was running down his white muzzle as he worked to squeeze the life out of the struggling animal.

When the elk finally went limp, Mingi hurried to his omega and started cleaning his muzzle off. He could feel the adrenaline pulsing from Seonghwa and couldn't help but smile. _Good job Precious._ He said, moving to lick the other side of Seonghwa's face.

Hongjoong came to join them, along with the two young alphas.

_Mama that was amazing!_ Gunner said, bounding up to Seonghwa and yapping a little bit. _You have to teach me how you did that!_

Seonghwa chuckled and nuzzled the young alpha's neck. _Of course baby. And you'll learn your own way too._

Gunner's tail wagged as he turned to Riley and both ran in circles around the elk, celebrating the kill.

Mingi studied their kill, trying to figure out the best way to get it home. The antlers alone were going to sell for a decent amount of money at the next human fair they went to. Humans loved to hand them on their wall and this elk sported an impressive set. If he or Seonghwa had made one wrong move then they could have been seriously injured.

Not really sure how else to do it, Mingi grabbed the upper part of the animal's back leg and started to drag it back home.

Hongjoong and Seonghwa helped to lift it off the ground when needed, but he did most of the work.

They met up with Jongho and Yunho, who had managed to bring down two bucks, and Avayla and Theo came back a short time later with a large doe.

_Good job everyone!_ Hongjoong said, looking at their kills. _This is just what we needed. Take them to the shed and Mingi and I will work on breaking them down. We will run into town later this week._

Inside their hut they had built, Mingi and Hongjoong did just that.

They meticulously worked to skin all four animals to keep the pelts whole before stretching them out on racks to dry in the sun.

Then they butchered the animals one by one, wrapping the deer meat in butcher's cloth they were provided with and storing it in the fridge they kept out there to keep it cold. Some they set aside to hang and turn into jerky. Same with the elk meat. About a fourth of it they hung to dry, while the rest they cut into appropriate portions sides and placed in the fridge.

They would come out to get what meat they needed when the time came, and eventually some of it might move to the freezer they kept in the cellar.

When they finished, Hongjoong took a small stack of meat into the house to give to Seonghwa for dinner.

Mingi smiled at his mate as Seonghwa shuffled around the kitchen, humming to himself happily. 

"Daddy?" Avayla's voice came from behind him.

He turned around and smiled down at his daughter. "Hey baby, so how did things go today?"

"Really well! Theo actually saved the kill because I stumbled at the last moment." She ran her hand through her hair nervously then played with the end.

Mingi felt his eyebrows rise in surprise as he glanced at where Theo was sitting with the twins, smiling with Yunho's smile as he helped them through one of their workbooks.

"Do you think..." Avayla continued, pursing her lips and looking off to the side, "That maybe one time we could go, just the two of us? And you could give me some pointers? I still feel like I'm not... Not a good hunter."

The alpha pulled his daughter into a hug immediately. "We can do that. But I think you need to give yourself more credit. You are still young and still learning."

Avayla hummed as she nestled into his chest. "Thank you."

Mingi felt his wolf spinning with pride as he kissed the top of Avayla's head and stroked the back of it slowly.

"I love you." She whispered.

"I love you too, baby girl."


	4. 3

The spring breeze still held a crisp note to it, making San shiver as he picked his way through the trees. He was on his way to visit a neighboring pack with Jongho.

They were trying to be better about reaching out and forming alliances with other wolves in the area now that packs were starting to form again.

Usually Hongjoong was the one to go meet with them and check in, but Yeosang was actually in a cuddly mood today, so he begged Jongho to go instead.

San was actually happy the younger alpha had agreed. It had been awhile since the two of them had been alone together.

Plus there was something he wanted to talk to Jongho about too.

_Who is it we are going to see?_ Jongho asked, turning his head to the side when a twig snapped.

They watched as a mountain lion padded through the undergrowth and froze when it sensed them. It's ears swiveled nervously and it quickly fled from the two bigger predators.

Jongho chuckled and kept going.

_The Grey's. They are an older family who managed to stay out of the war. They've lived in this area for a couple of years now._ San said, picking up the pace to walk next to Jongho. _They are nice. Male alpha, female beta, two beta children around Theo and Avayla's age._

Jongho huffed in response as he leapt up onto a boulder. San followed behind him as the worked their way up the wall of rocks.

If anything, the Grey's had the most defensive position. Their house packed up into the mountains and they could only get to it by going down a steep slope or going up this rock wall.

Once they reached the top, San and Jongho shifted, dressed, and waited.

Soon a large, grey alpha walked over to them and shifted, the male dressing quickly and offering a big smile as he ran his head through his salt and pepper hair.

"San! Jongho! It's good to see you." He said, walking over to them.

"Hello Antoine." San said, bowing his head in respect to the alpha of the territory. Jongho did the same. "We just came to check in and see if you needed anything?"

"You folks are too kind." Antoine said, crossing his arms. "But really, I think we are good. We got a locker full of meat right now so we don't even need to hunt for awhile. We appreciate you coming to check on us though."

Jongho smiled and clasped his hands behind his back. "We are going to be running into town in two days. Is there anything we can get you? Or would anyone like to do with us?"

Antoine glanced over his shoulder and pursed his lips. "You know... Laura has actually been kind of sick lately. Maybe some cold medicine?" He sounded worried.

"Yeah, we can do that for you." San said. "Is there any food or anything she wants?"

The alpha was quiet for a minute as he communicated with his mate. Then he chuckled and shook his head. "She would love some chocolate."

San smiled at him and nodded.

"I'll pay you when you get here, if that's ok?"

"Of course." Jongho said quickly. "We wouldn't have it any other way. Someone will bring it by as soon as we get back."

"Thank you." Antoine gave them a grateful smile before turning to head back to his house.

Jongho and San stripped and shifted again, then carefully picked their way back down the mountain of boulders.

They visited two other families, but neither of them needed anything so it was a quick visit.

On the way back, San slowed to a stop and let his ears fall back _. Jongho?_

The other alpha stopped and looked at him, tilting his head. _What's the matter?_

_Has Wooyoung seemed off to you?_ San asked with a small whine.

_I haven't noticed anything. I know he's been busy with the girls and helping Yeosang... What have you noticed?_

_I don't even know if I can explain it. It's like he's... spacey?_ San sat down and huffed.

_Ok, this is Wooyoung. He's always a little spacey._ Jongho said, extending his neck to press his forehead against San's shoulder.

_But this is more. And he's been rubbing his lower back a lot._

_Have you talked to Seonghwa about it?_

San shook his head and stood up so they could keep going. _No but I will._

_I would. He is pretty observant. Maybe he will think of something._

San huffed but followed Jongho as they sped up into an easy lope. They weren't worried about startling anyone on the way home, especially because they were only a few miles away from the edge of their territory. 

When they got back, San went to find the older omega immediately, sensing that Wooyoung was with Yunho and the kids playing out front.

Thankfully Seonghwa was just in the kitchen working on dinner while Yeosang kept him company by sitting at the table. Hongjoong was standing behind him rubbing his shoulders.

The alpha looked at San, his forehead creasing in concern. "What's the matter Sannie?" He asked, scowling his hands and earning a sound of displeasure from Yeosang. "Sorry love." He muttered, starting his rubbing again.

"I actually wanted to talk to Seonghwa about something." He said, looking down at the floor and fiddling with his fingers. "But it's not like... Anyway." San looked up and met Seonghwa's vibrant blue eyes. "Have you noticed anything odd about Wooyoung?"

The three other pack members looked at each other and San quickly just explained what he had seen, keeping his voice down so that anyone walking into the house wouldn't catch what he was talking about right away.

"I haven't see anything out of the ordinary, but I'll keep an eye out tonight." Seonghwa said, chewing on his bottom lip.

"Thank you, I'm sorry to do this, but something just feels... off." The alpha side and ran a hand through his hair.

Hongjoong gave him a small smile. "San you don't have to apologize. We're happy to help. How did visiting the packs go?"

"Good. Laura is sick so Antoine asked if we could pick up some medicine for her when we go into town."

"Oh no!" Yeosang said, placing a hand over his heart. "Is she ok?"

San hummed and nodded, "Yeah, he didn't seem too concerned. A little worried, but not urgent."

"Well we can make the trip tomorrow, I don't want her to go too long without medicine. And if that doesn't work then maybe we can get Wooyoung or Maria to make something for them." Hongjoong said.

His beta nodded in agreement and moaned when Hongjoong found a knot.

San turned and made his way out from, smiling as he watched his family running around in the open space.

Yunho and Theo were in their wolf form, bounding around on their long legs, while Lizbeth and Lorelai chased after them. They were laughing with a high pitched giggle that was getting closer to his every day.

Wooyoung was standing off to the side, a wide smile on his face, but Jongho was behind him rubbing his lower back. The alpha had a slight pout on his face as he slowly rubbed his thumbs in circles. "You're muscles are really tight back here Woo, have you been sleeping ok?"

San listened carefully from the front porch, noticing that Wooyoung's face scrunched up with discomfort. "For the most part. I feel like I toss and turn a little, but San hasn't said anything."

"Doesn't mean I haven't noticed." San said as he finally walked over to them. "But you usually fall back asleep fairly easily when I pull you closer to me."

His omega looked at him with an embarrassed smile, then let out a groan as Jongho pressed a little harder. Then he reached up and ran a hand over his stomach, but smiled as the twins both jumped on Yunho and tackled him to the ground.

Theo ran to his head and started to lick it, wagging his tail happily.

San returned his attention to his omega and looked him up and down. He looked a little flushed. "Wooyoung, seriously, are you feeling ok?"

The younger nodded and smiled at him. "Yeah, I'm fine Sannie."

A huff came from behind him and San turned so see Yunho starting at the omega.

"Yunho I'm fine. Really guys. My back just hurts a little, that's all."

"Mama! We don't want you hurting." Lorelai said, running over to hug Wooyoung's leg while Lizbeth hugged the other one.

"Yes, Mama needs to feel better." Lizbeth said. "Daddy make Mama feel better."

San smiled down at his girls. "Trust me, I'm trying. But your Mama can be very stubborn sometimes." He said before lunging forward and attacking Wooyoung's sides.

His omega squealed and tried to get away but Jongho grabbed his arms to hold him in place, laughing along with the girls as Wooyoung started to squirm under the assault.

This went on for a few minutes, until Wooyoung cried out and placed a hand on his stomach, but quickly tried to cover it up with more laughter for the girls' sake.

San jumped in immediately, "Alright girls. I think dinner is almost ready, so why don't you head in and wash up."

"Ok Daddy!" They said at the same time before running over to Theo, who had shifted back, and took his outstretched hands.

Yunho rubbed the back of his son's head quickly before jogging over to Wooyoung. "Youngie what was that?" He asked, cupping Wooyoung's face with his large hand.

"Nothing, I'm fine! I keep telling you guys. I'm just a little sore, or something." Wooyoung said, rolling his eyes and pushing Yunho's hand away.

San could tell he was getting a little angry now, which tended to happen recently. He watched as his omega huffed and stormed into the house. "See what I mean?" San said, giving a dejected look to Jongho.

"Yeah, I do now. You talked to Seonghwa?" Jongho said, scrunching his nose a little when San nodded. "At least he knows to be on alert. We'll see what he says after dinner."

The meal itself ended up being pretty standard. It was chaos for a bit as everyone served themselves and got situated, then the kids would talk about what they did all day. The only abnormal this was the fact that Wooyoung was quiet and didn't each much.

And then at the end of the meal, his omega excused himself and hurried down the hall to their room.

San stood to follow him, but Seonghwa held up a hand and motioned for San to follow him.

The alpha hesitated, but did as the omega wished and followed him into the kitchen.

Seonghwa did not look happy as he rounded on San. "Did Wooyoung miss a month?" he asked, glaring down at San.

"Wh-What? Not that I know of. He always takes it when the girls do so he remembers." San said, not liking what where Seonghwa was going with this.

"Well then something else is seriously wrong because right now Wooyoung is showing all the signs of being in preheat, and if you don't want the other three knotting him too I suggest you two get out of here. Tonight."

San felt his stomach drop as he ran from the kitchen.

He found Wooyoung in their bedroom, sitting on the bed and holding his stomach. "Sannie?" He whimpered, looking up at his alpha with wide eyes. "Something's wrong..." He whimpered.

"That's what I've been trying to tell you baby." San said, moving to kneel in front of him. "Did you miss dose?"

Wooyoung gave him a confused look. "No. I don't thi-" His eyes widened. "I did... That day you came in. I gave the girls their dose and... And then you came in and..." Wooyoung got paler than he already was. "I didn't take it... Oh god."

San mentally cursed himself for distracting his mate during such a crucial time, but now was not the time to dwell on that. He reached forward to caress Wooyoung's face. "Take a deep breath. Seonghwa said you are still in preheat, but we need to go now, ok?"

Wooyoung nodded and stayed on the bed while San quickly packed them a bag.

Then he ran back to the living room and noticed the three other alphas standing on the opposite side of the room. "Is he ok?" Jongho said, moving to step forward but Hongjoong grabbed his arm to hold him back.

"Yeah, Seonghwa was right. I just came to get the girls..." San said, rubbing the back of his head at the pained look on Jongho's face. But he got a nod from the younger alpha and turned to his daughters. "Girls, come with me real quick."

They followed without question and ran to Wooyoung when they saw him sitting on the bed. He put on a smile for them and held them tight. "Hello my loves."

"Mama are you ok?" Lizbeth asked, looking up at Wooyoung with wide eyes.

"Yes baby I'm ok." He looked back and forth between both of them. "We just wanted to say good bye and tell you to be good for your uncles."

"Where are you going?" Lorelai turned to look at San.

The alpha cringed and looked at his omega.

Wooyoung had a sad smile on his face. "Now you know how Mama told you I want us to have an open and honest relationship?" The girls nodded, giving their full attention to Wooyoung. "Well Mama messed up and he missed a dose of that medicine we are supposed to take every month."

"You mean the stuff that prevents the heat?" Lorelai asked.

"Yes baby, very good." Wooyoung said. San watched as he worked to hold back a groan. "Well now Daddy and I need to go to help me through it. And we need to go tonight."

The twins looked at each other and San could see they were trying to process what Wooyoung was saying.

Lizbeth glanced back up at Wooyoung. "How long with you be gone?"

"I don't know. It could be a few days, so you both need to be good and listen to your uncles. Ok?" Wooyoung said, running his hands through both their hair.

"Yes Mama." They said at the same time before moving to wrap their arms around them.

San joined them for a hug and he rubbed his cheek against each head in turn. "I'm proud of you both. We need to get going, but we will be back soon."

"Be safe." Lizbeth turned to give him a kiss on the cheek, then Lorelai mirrored her.

"We will. Now will you go tell your uncle's we need to go please? And we will see you soon." San cupped their chins and rubbed their noses together.

The girls smiled and nodded.

"We love you." Wooyoung said, fighting another whimper.

"We love you too Mama!" Their daughters said at the same time before running from the room.

San helped Wooyoung stand and led him out the back door where they shifted and ran into the trees without another glance back. He prayed that they made it out on time and Wooyoung's wolf wouldn't latch onto the other three, maybe four, adult alphas in the house.


	5. 4

"Do you think they are going to be ok?" Yunho asked from where he was sitting on the bed.

Jongho sighed and shook his head. "Aren't they always? But I can't believe Wooyoung messed up like this..."

Yunho just chuckled before grabbed Jongho's hand and pulling him into the bed. "Are you really that surprised? Honestly, I'm surprised he didn't mess up sooner."

Jongho hummed and wrapped his arms around his mate, hugging him from behind. "I know."

"Jongho, I can hear you pouting, what's wrong." Yunho asked trying to twist to see his alpha. He had a theory as to why Jongho was being so odd, but he still wanted to hear it for himself.

"Nothing, I'm just being silly and protective." Jongho sighed and buried his face in between Yunho's shoulders. "I just get worried when things like this get brought up. If we hadn't caught on..."

Yunho felt his heart breaking a little at the pain in Jongho's voice. His theory had been right. Jongho's wolf had locked into the fact that if they hadn't caught on that Wooyoung was in preheat, and his heat actually hit him, then he would have to be knotted by all four alphas. And none of them knew if Avayla's wolf would latch onto that either since it had never been by an omega in heat before.

No one wanted Wooyoung to have to go through something like that again.

The beta turned to face his alpha and kissed his nose. "You're not silly, love. You're just worried about someone you love, it's ok."

Jongho looked up at him with big, round eyes and nodded. "I'm sorry, I don't mean to be this way."

"When have I ever been upset about you loving Youngie?" Yunho asked, extending his neck to kiss the mark he left on Jongho's shoulder.

He smiled when he felt the deep rumble come from Jongho's chest. "I don't deserve you, and I never will." Jongho hummed, hugging Yunho tighter.

"No, probably not, but you're still stuck with me." The beta said, kissing the mark again. "He's going to be fine. You know San will take care of him."

"Yeah, I know."

Yunho chuckled again as the concern started to fade away from his alpha.

They had other things they needed to think about anyway.

The next day, he, Jongho, and Hongjoong all got into a car to take the deer pelts and meat into down. They stopped by Kenneth's shop to sell to him first and stayed to chat with Maria for a little bit. She promised she would be by in the next couple of days to check up on Yeosang.

After that, they ran to the small general store. It didn't have a large variety, but it usually had what they needed.

Yunho scanned over the list Seonghwa had given him and picked a few items off the shelves. A lot of non-perishable items filled the cart. They liked to stock up just in case.

When he got to the medicine, he turned to Jongho. "What did Antoine want?"

"I think he just wanted some basic cold medicine. I know we won't get much more than that here. It'll be a start for them at least."

The beta nodded as he picked up something labeled that it was for cold and flu. The fact that this store even carried human medication was great because it saved them a long drive to the nearest city.

Hopefully it was what Laura needed to get better.

.

.

.

.

"Jongho, do you want to go with me to visit the Grey's again?" Hongjoong asked as they unloaded the groceries.

The young alpha nodded as he carried three bags inside and Hongjoong followed him, wanting to go check on Yeosang.

He smiled when he saw his beta dozing in his rocking chair. Yeosang had both hands resting on his stomach and his head was tilted to the side.

Hongjoong walked forward and brushed his beta's cheek with his finger. "Sangie? Love?"

Yeosang groaned and blinked several times. "Joong... What is it?"

"Nothing love, I just wanted to let you know that I'm running the medicine over to the Grey's and I'll be back in a little bit."

The other hummed and nodded before closing his eyes again and smacking his lips a little.

Hongjoong had to work hard not to coo over his mate as his wolf stirred inside him. He was so happy that he was having another baby with his mate. And Riley was going to going to be such a good big brother.

He leaned forward and placed a gentle kiss on Yeosang's cheek. "I love you." Hongjoong whispered before turning and leaving the room.

Jongho was already waiting for him out front, the bag of medicine and chocolate in his mouth.

Hongjoong stripped and shifted and followed the younger through the trees.

When they got to the border of the Grey's territory, they shifted back and dressed, then waited for Antoine to show up like he normally did.

But when five minutes passed without him showing, Hongjoong started to get a little nervous. "Do you think he could have caught what Laura has?" He asked, looking at Jongho.

"It's possible. He's a laid back alpha, I doubt he would be upset if we go to the house. Especially if he is sick." Jongho said, pursing his lips a little.

Hongjoong sighed and started to walk forward.

Antoine's territory wasn't very big, so they made it to his house in about fifteen minutes. The windows were open and the curtains were blowing out of them, so they had to be home. And Hongjoong could sense the other alpha nearby.

"Antoine? Laura?" Hongjoong called out, walking forward slowly.

"Joong, I don't like this." Jongho said looking around the small inlet the house had been built in.

Hongjoong just nodded, the hairs on the back of his neck rising a little.

The wind picked up a little, rustling the leaves in the trees.

As they got closer to the house, Jongho turned around to watch Hongjoong's back so he could go and knock on the door. "Antoine?"

He waited for a moment, then he heard movement inside. The door opened, and Hongjoong let out a deep sigh as the older alpha yawned while rubbing his eye. "Oh, hey Hongjoong. I wasn't expecting you for a couple of days."

"Sorry to come unannounced, but we wanted to make sure Laura is taken care of." Hongjoong held up the bag and Antoine went to reach for it, but had to turn away once a coughing fit hit him.

The alpha bent over, hacking up something from his lungs. "I'm so sorry." He groaned, rubbing his throat. "You can set that down, I won't make you come any closer. Our kids have it too, so you should get out of here. I'll pay you next time I see you?" He asked, covering his mouth as he turned away to cough again.

Hongjoong winced at the painful sound. "Don't worry about it. You guys just focus on getting better. We'll try to bring you guys some food too."

Antoine gave him a grateful smile before taking a shaky breath. He looked so pale. "Thanks." The alpha forced out before closing the door.

Hongjoong and Jongho hurried back home, anxious to get back to their families.

Yeosang was still sleeping in the rocking chair, but he woke up as soon as he heard Hongjoong's footsteps.

The alpha smiled at him before he ducked into the bathroom and scrubbed his hands under some hot water. Even if he didn't touch Antoine, he didn't want to risk getting sick.

"Is everything ok?" Yeosang asked, peeking into the bathroom. "How are the Grey's?"

"Antoine is sick now too. So we just dropped the medicine off and left. I'm going to try and bring them some food soon since none of them are up to hunting." Hongjoong said, turning to smile at his mate. "Even the kids have it."

The younger's eyebrows rose and he pursed his lips. "Do you know what it is?"

"It sounded like it was just a cold love. We've gotten one off and on ourselves." Hongjoong leaned over and kissed his beta's forehead. "How are you doing? Do you feel after your nap?"

Yeosang laced their fingers together and pulled Hongjoong from the room. "Hungry. Make me dinner."

.

.

.

.

Wooyoung whimpered as his stomach started to cramp more. He was having a hard time keeping up with San as they picked their way up the side of the mountain.

His alpha was trying to find a cave or a sheltered place for them to stay in. One that would keep them away from the rest of the pack, and away from any other predators since both were going to be vulnerable when their wolves took over.

Although Wooyoung had no doubt that San would be able to protect him is something happened. He had proven himself many times before.

Normally a pack with omegas had a separate area on the outskirts of the territory that omegas would be taken to so they could ride out their heats or be knotted by an alpha. It would be some place far enough away that other alphas couldn't latch on to the omega's distress.

But their territory was fairly small and because Seonghwa and Wooyoung were on suppressants they hadn't felt the need to build one.

_Sannie... It hurts._ Wooyoung whimpered as he curled in on himself. The last time he had experienced a heat what when he and San were returned to their human bodies after being stuck in wolf form for over a year, but they were able to deal with it right away. 

He felt so hot and dizzy.

_Keep up baby. I think I see a place for us coming up._ San turned to lick his muzzle.

Wooyoung could feel how nervous his alpha was, and he couldn't blame him. The only other time he had experienced Wooyoung's heat, Wooyoung had already been knotted by Jongho, so there was no prep work that had needed to be done by San.

They had read up on it together, of course, so that way San knew how to talk to the twins about it. But even when Wooyoung was taking the cure, he stayed on the suppressants to prevent this... Doing that added to the difficulty of getting Wooyoung pregnant, but they thought it was necessary for his safety and comfort. Maria hadn't wanted to mess with the potions affect on his body.

The omega pushed himself forward a little more, but his legs started to shake.

Then he let out another whimper and fell forward, feeling his body shifting almost against his will.

_Wooyoung!_ San called out, running back to meet his omega.

He shifted and knelt next to Wooyoung to lift him off the ground.

Wooyoung saw his pupils dilate when he was his with the overwhelming smell of lavender. But San shook his head and started running up the mountain side, cradling Wooyoung to his chest as he went.

There was a small cave tucked away in the side of the mountain that provided good cover. San set Wooyoung down at the entrance, looking up and down the mountain side nervously, before heading in to investigate.

Wooyoung clutched his stomach and whimpered, hating how helpless he felt right now. And he knew he basically had a large target painted on him because he could already feel the slick he naturally created pouring out of him.

"Ok, it's clear." San said, coming out to grab Wooyoung. He lifted his omega off the ground and carried him into the back of the cave before setting him down one more time.

Then San ran back to the entrance of the cave, muttering something about trying to cover or scatter Wooyoung's scent, before coming back and unrolling the fur they had brought with them to lay on. "How are you doing?"

Wooyoung whimpered and reached for him. "It's... It's still not time yet, but I just want it to stop."

San nodded and rubbed the side of the younger's head. "It'll be ok. You've got this my love." He whispered before leaning forward to kiss Wooyoung's mark.

The omega nodded and curled up in San's arms as the wait for his heat to hit began.


	6. 5

" **Alpha.** "

San woke up with a jolt, his wolf reeling inside of him. His head snapped to the side and saw Wooyoung shaking on the ground. He was flipped onto his stomach and rutting against the fur they were using for a bed.

He felt his wolf pushing itself forward and the omega's lavender scent blasted him. " **Alpha is here little omega.** " San leaned forward and nuzzled against Wooyoung's neck.

His mate whimpered and tried to lift his head off the fur, but the heat radiating off him showed how lost in his heat he really was. It made it impossible for him to have complete control of his body.

San worked quickly to strip them of their clothes, having to guide Wooyoung's arms and legs because Wooyoung kept tried to attach himself to his alpha.

" **Patience baby. Alpha will take care of you.** " San purred as he finished pulling the omega's shirt off.

" **Alpha...** " Wooyoung panted over and over.

San hesitated, starting to doubt that he was going to be able to do this right. But then Wooyoung stared at him with gold eyes that faded to brown for a second, and he knew he had to do everything he could to take care of his omega.

He flipped Wooyoung on his back and spread his legs. His gut flipped, several times, as the lavender slick pouring out of the omega filled the entire cave. " **So ready for Alpha already.** "

" **Yes, Alpha. Please... I need Alpha's knot.** " Wooyoung reached for him while letting out several whines.

San let out a low, rumbling growl as he ducked down and ran tongue tongue from the omega's entrance all the way up to the tip of his length.

Wooyoung let out a long moan that could almost be called a howl the entire time while his body shook.

" **So sweet. Alpha likes.** " San lowered his head again and started lapping at the slick coming from his omega. Then he slowly pushed his tongue in, gripping Wooyoung's thighs to keep his legs forced open.

He could hear how heavily Wooyoung was panting and knew he needed to hurry to ease the pain the omega was going through.

San inserted a finger next to his tongue, working it in and out and twisting it to help stretch Wooyoung. He couldn't risk hurting his omega, no matter how desperate they were.

After a few minutes, San inserted a second finger while raising his head up to like the tip of Wooyoung's length.

The omega gasped and thrust his hips up a little, his golden eyes spinning into the back of his head.

Then San let his tongue swirl around the tip, running it over his slit a few times, loving the small mewls coming from his mate was he added a third finger.

" **Alpha! Alpha please... Kn-Knot... Must give Alpha... Pups!** " Wooyoung cried out when San took his entire length in his mouth.

The alpha hummed in response, adding to the sensation for his omega as he bobbed his head up and down.

When he felt that Wooyoung was properly stretched, he gathered up some of his slick and started to rub it on his own length with it.

" **Alpha is almost ready baby boy.** " San snarled and grabbed Wooyoung's waist, spinning him quickly to flip him onto his hands and knees.

The omega cried out at the sudden shift and started to breath even harder, saying alpha each time he exhaled.

San learned over him, rubbing his cheek against the side of his omega's head while wrapping his arms around Wooyoung's waist to rub his stomach. " **Are you ready for Alpha? Alpha wants pups...** " San growled before nibbling Wooyoung's ear.

Wooyoung let out a long whine as he rocked his hips. San shivered as he length slipped between the younger's cheeks and he was able to start grinding against him.

" **Yes Alpha. Fill me. Let me give you... AH!** " Wooyoung cried out when San entered him in one smooth motion, bottoming out almost immediately.

The omega's shaking arms gave way and he fell forward so his face was pressed against the fur.

His alpha took advantage of this and placed a hand on the younger's back to get him to bend it as he started to ram into him.

Deep grunting came from he older's mouth as he kept up this pace and even tried to go a little faster as as the desire to breed his mate grew even more. He needed it. It was an instinct that drove him forward as he brought a hand up to grab his omega's hair and pull him up by it.

The younger cried out, tears pouring down his face as inaudible words fell from his mouth.

San wrapped an arm around his shoulders, and Wooyoung tried his best to hold onto it as San thrust up into him relentlessly.

Then the alpha started to kiss and nuzzle against his mark. " **You feel so good baby boy. So good for Alpha.** "

Wooyoung tried to respond, but all that came out was more whimpering as his head fell back onto San's shoulder and he squeezed the alpha's arm.

" **My omega.** " San growled as he felt his knot starting to form. He held Wooyoung tighter, wrapping and arm around his stomach as well, and thrust his hips even harder.

Wooyoung came first, spraying the fur in front of them. His whimpers got even louder as he shook in San's arms.

The alpha wasn't far behind. His knot burst and he let out a sound close to a howl as he rocked his hips in time with the pulsing of his length, pumping his omega full of his seed.

His omega let out a satisfied sigh and San was able to push his wolf back to check on him, rubbing Wooyoung's sweat soaked hair away from his forehead. "Are you ok baby?" He could feel that Wooyoung's fever was already breaking.

All the omega could do was manage a nod as he twisted his body just enough so nuzzle San's mark. Content sounds came from deep within Wooyoung as he practically purred when San started to rub his stomach.

The alpha's own wolf started to churn again at the possibility of them having another baby. Or babies. San was a twin, so he knew that's how they got the twins this time. It increased the chance of them having twins again.

But they had never discussed having anymore pups only because they didn't know if Wooyoung could. No one knew if the cure was a one and done thing, and with him suppressing his heats, conception was less likely.

San slowly shifted them so they could lay down. He laced their fingers together and rubbed their hands over Wooyoung's chest and stomach as the younger twisted his head to connect their lips in a deep, passionate kiss.

When Wooyoung pulled away, San noticed he was glowing as he smiled at him. "You know... I'm actually secretly glad this happened." He whispered, a mischievous glint in his eyes.

"Oh? And why's that?" San asked, feeling his heart pounding. He already knew the answer, he could feel it through their bond, but he still wanted to hear the words.

"Because I want to have another baby with you." Wooyoung said before kissing San again.

Both let out a wanting moan and San rotated his hips a little. Wooyoung whimpered at the feeling of his knot moving inside him and San smirked into their kiss. "Yup, it's secure." He chuckled and kissed Wooyoung's cheek.

Wooyoung rolled his eyes and turned his head back around to lay it down.

San placed his head on top of his omega and felt both of their wolves purring at the thought of having another pup.

.

.

.

.

Yeosang groaned as he sat in his rocking chair. It was about the only place he felt comfortable right now as his belly got bigger and bigger.

The was the part he remembered not liking about being pregnant with Riley. The constant pain.

But this chair seemed to help.

He smiled when he remembered the excited look on Hongjoong's face as he carved each piece out himself and assembled it with the help of Riley.

"Well Rhodey, I sure can't wait for you to get here." He said, looking down and giggling when he felt his son kick. "I'm glad you feel the same way."

"Knock knock!" A familiar voice came from the door to his room. Then Maria appeared around the corner and smiled at him. "Hello honey, how are you and little man doing?"

Yeosang chuckled and felt his heart warming at the sight of the midwife. "I'm uncomfortable, but that's nothing new."

"Well let me see if I can help with that." Maria came over and knelt in front of him. She pulled up the hem of his shirt and placed her hands on his stomach.

Instantly, the gift she possessed washed over him an Yeosang felt himself relaxing.

Maria was such a constant support for all of them. She and Kenneth were such an essential part of their life, Yeosang didn't know what they would do without her.

He only got a few minutes of peace with her before the door to his room burst open again. "Maria!!" Riley shouted, running forward and jumping into her arms.

"Hello my sweet boy! How're you doing?" The beta beamed. She always lit up whenever the kids were around.

"I'm good! Can we bake some cookies?" Riley asked, squirming a little in her arms.

"Sure, go get whoever wants to help and I'll be there in a bit. I just need to finish helping Mommy ok?" Maria tapped Riley's nose with her finger.

He cheered and ran from the room.

"COOKIES!!!!!" He shouted as he ran down the hall. A few other cheers could be heard, indicating that there would be more than one kid joining them.

Maria chuckled and returned her hands to Yeosang's stomach. "You don't mind, do you?"

"Not at all. They adore spending time with you. You know you and Kenneth are like their grandparents." Yeosang said, his wolf churning as it agreed with him.

Maria pursed her lips and stared at his stomach, but Yeosang could see the tears forming at the corners of her eyes.

They all loved Maria so much.

"Well, little man seems to be in perfect health." She said after a few minutes.

"Thank you." Yeosang sighed, then accepted her help to get out of the chair and followed her to the kitchen.

"Well I'll be! Look at you all dressed and ready." Maria gasped, placing a hand over her heart as they saw Riley, Gunner, Lizbeth, and Lorelai all wearing the aprons she had made for them.

They all giggled and jumped up and down as Maria grabbed her own apron.

Yeosang pulled out a dining chair and sat in it so he could watch, rubbing his belly as Gunner ran up to help Maria tie her apron.

A few minutes later, Avayla stepped inside with Theo, and both of their eyes lit up at the sight of Maria helping the younger kids measure the ingredients.

"Maria!" The young alpha cried out, running forward and hugging the midwife and burying her face in her neck.

Yeosang heard a sniff and turned to see Seonghwa standing in the corner of the room, wiping a tear from his eye.

The omega sent him an understanding smile. All the parents knew that Avayla's relationship with Maria, and the twins for that matter, was a little more special. There was only so much eight men could do when raising three girls.

Maria pulled back and rubbed Avayla's cheek, then turned to do the same to Theo, who's smile grew as he rubbed their foreheads together.

"Ok, all of my babies are here, so let's get started!"

It was like the seven of them were like a well oiled machine. Gunner and Riley did the dry ingredients, the twins did the wet, and Avayla and Theo rolled out the dough while Maria made her special icing.

Then they all worked together to cut out shapes in the sugar cookie dough and decorate them once they were out of the oven and cooled.

"Mommy have one of mine!" Riley said, running over with a star he had overloaded with sprinkles when he was finished.

"This looks amazing!" Yeosang cooed, cupping Riley's chin. "Thank you sweetie." His son watched with wide eyes as Yeosang took a bite. Besides the gallon of sprinkles, the cookie was perfect. It was soft and slightly gooey on the inside. And Maria's frosting was always perfect. "It's delicious." Yeosang leaned forward to rub his nose against Riley's.

The little alpha clapped his hands and ran back to decorate another cookie.

Yeosang chuckled and watched as Theo wrapped his arms around Avayla and nuzzled her mark, revealing a rare moment for her to melt and succumb to him. She dipped her finger into the frosting and lifted it up to his mouth. He took it and licked it several times before kissing her cheek and holding her tighter.

A slight cough came from the back door as Hongjoong stepped inside and Yeosang turned to look at him. It didn't sound right...

He could instantly feel that something was wrong and went to stand up.

"No, no." Maria said, waiving her hand at him as she hurried by. The beta pulled Hongjoong into the living room. "When did this start?" She asked, pressing her hands to the alpha's forehead.

"I'm fine Maria, I just did a lot of running, that's all." Hongjoong said, trying to get up again.

But then to coughing started. It was thick and full of mucus.

Yeosang's heart dropped. "Is that what Antoine sounded like?" He asked, dying to go to his mate's side, but Seonghwa had come to put his hands on Yeosang's shoulder to hold him in place.

Hongjoong grimaced and rubbed his chest. "Kind of, yeah."

"You got this from just meeting him at the border?"

"No... He didn't meet us so we went to the house." Hongjoong said, glancing at Yeosang.

The beta's heart dropped and he covered his mouth. "Maria?"

She just placed a hand over his chest and closed her eyes. "I'm guessing you've been in contact with everyone?"

Hongjoong nodded.

"Ok. We are getting you set up at the opposite end of the house from Yeosang. Hopefully he won't catch this, and I pray it's just a cold. Who went with you to the Grey's?"

"Jongho." Hongjoong forced out as another wave of coughing hit.

He suddenly looked very pale as he fell back on the couch.

Maria just nodded quickly and helped pull him off the couch. "Seonghwa, honey, call everyone home. I know San and Wooyoung are gone right now, but hopefully they stayed in range. I need to check on Jongho, and if he's up to it, or if maybe San and Wooyoung are, I think we should go check on the Grey's."

Yeosang kept his hand over his mouth to cover his quivering lip. If Maria was this worried, then she must sense something bad...

"Yeosang, take the kids to San and Wooyoung's room. I know they are on the direct opposite side of the house. I'll call Kenneth and get him to bring me a few things." Maria said, walking over to the phone.

"Mommy?" Riley said, coming over and taking his hand. "What's going on with Dad?"

Forcing down his fears, Yeosang turned to his son and patted their joined hands. "He's just not feeling well and we don't want to risk getting you sick. Come one, let's go kids. We can finish baking alter."

Theo took the twin's hands and led them down the hall while Avayla guided Gunner by his shoulders.

Hongjoong shot a longing glance at Yeosang, and he could feel his alpha's pain and sorrow as he watched Yeosang leave the room.


	7. 6

When Jongho got Seonghwa's message, he knew something was wrong. He could sense the omega's worry from where he was patrolling.

_What's going on?_ He asked as he ran back to the house.

_Just get back here. San, Wooyoung, can you hear me?_

_Yes_. They answered at the same time.

_We need you to come home, but can you stop by the Grey's on your way home? Stay in wolf form if you can._ Seonghwa's voice sounded urgent.

_Yeah we are getting ready to head out now. What's wrong?_ San asked.

_Hongjoong is sick. Maria is really worried._ Seonghwa said after a long pause.

Jongho stopped in his tracks. _But... We didn't come in contact with him at all. Yeah we went to his house, but we didn't touch him or anything. He made us set the medicine on the ground._

_Jongho baby are you feeling ok?_ Yunho jumped in, panic in his voice.

_Yeah, I feel fine. I'll be home soon. San, Wooyoung, be careful please..._

_We will._ Wooyoung said gently, sending his appreciation for Jongho through the link

He huffed as he picked up the pace. This had to be bad if Maria was worried about it. Sure they had been sick in the past, but it was nothing some cold medicine couldn't fix. She must have sensed something.

When he got to the house, he shifted, and noticed that Seonghwa, Mingi, and Yunho were waiting in the living room.

His beta ran over to him and pulled him into a hug, bending over to bury his nose in Jongho's neck. "Are you ok? Please tell me you are ok?" He said, cupping Jongho's face and looking him over.

"Yes, love, I'm fine. Now can someone please tell me what is going on? Where are the kids?" His heart beat faster when he didn't see his son.

_We are in the bedroom Papa._ Theo answered, having sensed his father's panic. _Maria wanted all of us in Uncle Youngie's room so we were as far away from Uncle Joongie as possible..._

_Are you ok?_

_Yes. Just a little scared. Uncle Sangie is really worried though._ Theo sounded upset and it make Jongho want to go to his son's side.

And he was about to, when the front door opened and Kenneth came inside. "Where is she?" He asked.

Seonghwa pointed down the hall. "Hongjoong's room."

The older nodded and hurried down there.

The four of them stared after him as they waited.

.

.

.

.

San led the way as they picked their way down the mountain and made a sharp turn to head to the Grey's.

Wooyoung stayed close by his side, feeling much better after going through his heat. He had that blanket of hope laying over him from going through that with his alpha, and he hoped that they could have another pup together.

But it felt like a horrible time for this to happen...

If Hongjoong really was as sick and Seonghwa thought he might be, then things could take an awful turn for the worse.

They were all going to have to work together to get through this. Especially with Yeosang being due in about two months. He was going to need to keep his stress level down or risk giving birth early...

As soon as the crossed the border into the Grey's territory, San paused mid step.

Wooyoung felt it too.

Something was very wrong...

He stayed close to his alpha as they walked forward, their ears swiveling back and forth as they kept their senses on high alert.

It didn't even sound like there were any wild animals nearby, everything was just... Silent.

Wooyoung stepped on a branch and the snap sounded like a gunshot, making him jump and press himself into San's side.

The older was still on high alert because all he did was flick his ears back, where normally he would turn and make sure Wooyoung was ok.

The omega bowed his head and paid more attention to where he was walking.

A slight breeze blew through the trees, rustling the leaves and sending a chill down Wooyoung's spine and he could feel his fur standing up on end.

Antoine should have come to meet them a long time ago if everything was alright.

They slowly made their way to his house but paused when they didn't see any lights on.

Wooyoung shivered and hesitated, wanting to let out a small whine, but was too terrified to make a sound at the same time.

_Stay here._ San said, still not looking at him.

_No... I can't._ Wooyoung said, pressing himself to San's side.

His alpha turned his head slightly, but didn't object.

They walked together to the front door. It was hanging open, just slightly ajar.

San paused again, then slowly push it with his paw.

It swung open with a long, high squeak.

The house itself was pitch black, and with the setting sun, it cast shadows over everything.

Wooyoung's ears fell back as he followed San inside.

He was blasted with an awful smell. It made him back up quickly, his claws clattering against the hardwood floor.

_Sannie... What is that?_

San didn't answer. He was staring at the corner of the room where another door was open.

There was a leg sticking out of it and it looked like a dried trail of blood behind it.

Now Wooyoung whimpered. He couldn't help it as his tail lowered and went between his legs. The fact that no one had come to see who was intruding on their home was a very, very bad thing.

The pair stepped forward, painfully aware of how loud their steps were, and nether one really wanted to go further so their steps were heavy. 

San reached forward and pushed the door open and let out a heavy sigh.

Antoine was face down on the ground, hands covered in blood, reaching for his family that were on the bed.

It looked like they were covered in blood too, like they couldn't stop coughing it up...

Wooyoung turned his head and shoved it into San's side.

_We should go..._ San said, his voice trembling as he pushed Wooyoung out of the room. _I want to go check on some of the other families and see if they are ok. We can at least try to warn them._

_That sounds like a good idea_. Wooyoung whimpered, casting one more look at the family they had come to know so well before following San out of the house.

If there was some kind of sickness going around, they needed to be prepared.

_Sannie... Maybe there's something in the books that can help us out._ Wooyoung said, trotting to catch up with them as they made their way to the rock wall.

_That's a really good idea.We will look as soon as we get home. I'm sure Maria will sit down and help you too. I-_ San paused as they got to the edge of the Grey's territory.

Down below, there were two wolves that looked like they were out of patrol. They paused right over where San and Wooyoung had traveled to get up the rock wall.

They looked up locking eyes with San, and the alpha snarled, moving in front of Wooyoung.

These wolves were unfamiliar.

But all they did was stand there and just watch them. From what Wooyoung could tell, one was a beta and one was an omega.

Maybe they were just traveling through?

They scented the air again and glanced at each other, before turning and running away.

San stayed frozen on the spot for several minutes, making sure that they weren't going to come back, before he gave Wooyoung the go ahead to descend.

They took their turn scenting the area where the two wolves had been. Wooyoung huffed and backed away. There was something familiar about it, but he couldn't place the scent...

San whined and nudged his side, then jerked his head.

The pair ran to the next territory, determined to make sure everyone they knew was ok.

.

.

.

.

Seonghwa jumped up from the couch as soon as he heard a door open and close at the end of the hall. The other three followed suit.

Maria looked tired already and Kenneth was watching her carefully.

The pair came up to the family and handed them all masks.

Seonghwa felt his heart drop as he stared down at the thick fabric.

"I'm going to be honest with you, I don't know what it is Hongjoong has. But I don't like it. It feels very foreign." Maria said as she slipped a mask over her own nose and mouth. "I don't know how much these will help, everyone has already been exposed... We all need to be aware of how we are feeling now, and anyone who gets sick will be kept on that side of the house."

"It might even come to the point where we take at least the kids back to our place." Kenneth said, looking at everyone with concern. "If they show no signs of getting sick, they shouldn't be exposed to it longer than they have to."

Mingi wrapped an arm around Seonghwa's waist and pulled him closer. "Isn't there anything you can do?"

Everyone looked at Maria and held their breath.

"I don't know." She said, looking down at the floor. "I think we need to wait for San and Wooyoung to get back with an update before we can really decide how to proceed. Seonghwa, honey?" Maria held out the bag of masks.

The omega nodded slowly and took it with shaking hands before going to the opposite end of the house.

He opened the door to San and Wooyoung's room and felt his heart sink a little more.

Yeosang had his eyes closed and was curled up in between Avayla and Theo, with the beta rubbing Yeosang's shoulder gently. Riley was holding Yeosang's hands and had his head resting against his mom's stomach.

Avayla lifted her head up. "What's going on Mama?"

At her voice, Yeosang tried to lift his head up, but he instantly lost a lot of color and let it fall against the back of the bed.

Seonghwa rushed forward and sat in front of the beta. "Sangie, you need to take a deep breath and try to relax, ok? You can't be stressing yourself out, it's not good for little Rhodey."

"Wh-What did she s-say?" He asked, peering at Seonghwa though his long eyelashes.

The omega sighed and Avayla reached out to place a hand on his knee. "Maria... doesn't know what it is. She wants all of us to start wearing these." He started to hand out the masks. "But we've all been exposed." Seonghwa turned and looked at each of the four younger kids in turn. "So you need to tell us if you start feeling bad, ok?"

Gunner moved and climbed into Seonghwa's lap, wrapping himself around the omega. "I'm scared Mama..."

"I know baby." Seonghwa held him tight and kissed the top of his head. "I am too. But we need to stick together, ok?"

"When is Mommy and Daddy coming home?" Lizbeth asked. Lorelai nodded in agreement and the twins clung to each other. Both were shaking.

Theo hopped up and went to sit with them, pulling them both into his chest.

Seonghwa gave him a grateful smile. "We need to stick together and help each other out. Can you all do that for me?" He got nods. "And I need your help trying to keep Uncle Sangie calm. If we want a healthy baby he needs to stay in Uncle Sangie's tummy for as long as possible. That is our biggest mission, ok?"

"I'll be fine Hwa..." Yeosang said, but his voice was weak.

"Yeah, that was convincing. And I'm not sure when Wooyoung and San will be back. I'm hoping any time now because we are needing an up-" Seonghwa paused, hearing the back door open. "Put those masks on babies, I'll be back soon."

He hurried down the hallway and saw San and Wooyoung standing in the living room, grave looks on their faces.

Maria walked up to Wooyoung and took his hands. "Well?"

The pair exchanged a look. "The Grey's are dead... And we went by the Thompson's, the Lee's and the Markley's..." Wooyoung said softly. "The Thompson's are fine, and are aware of what's going on. The Lee's have lost two pups already... and the Markley's are all dead... We didn't want to risk going to any other families. Maria, what is this?"

The old beta placed a hand over her heart and sat on the couch.

"I don't know."


	8. 7

To say the house was a mess was a complete understatement.

It had fallen into complete disarray in the three weeks since Hongjoong had been sick. He wasn't showing signs of getting better, but he wasn't getting worse either, so Maria took that as a plus.

However, others were starting to get sick too.

Jongho was the first to fall. It had happened while he was out hunting for the pack with Mingi and Yunho. He was just about to make the kill when he paused had started coughing, which in wolf form sounded more like hacking.

The blood followed soon after.

He was moved to the same room as Hongjoong so Maria could keep an eye on both of them at the same time.

Seonghwa was next. When it hit him he collapsed in the middle of the living room while helping Gunner, Riley, and the twins with their lessons.

Maria had debated taking the kids away, but they had already been exposed to the sickness, so leaving the house would just increase the risk of spreading it to other families.

She and Wooyoung worked tirelessly to come up with a potion for them to take. That seemed to be what was making it so that those who were sick weren't getting any worse, and those who were healthy it helped keep them healthy. They were determined to find a cure though.

Yunho helped out with the hunting as often as he could. With two alphas down it really put a strain on their team for hunting. He and Mingi would head out whenever possible to make sure they had enough food.

Maria kept saying it was important to get some kind of food into everyone and keep up a healthy diet.

Avayla and Theo really stepped up too. They went out on every hunt while Mingi, Yunho, and San would rotate who went hunting or into town for more supplies.

But then Theo caught it too.

Yunho went crazy knowing both his mate and his son were sick and there was nothing he could do about it.

He couldn't even go see them...

The only thing that kept him distracted was trying to keep Yeosang calm. His fellow beta was having a harder and harder time coming to grips with the fact that Rhodey still wasn't due for a little over a month, and his mate was potentially dying in the other room.

"Sangie, you need to eat." Yunho said gently as he sat on the side of the omega's bed.

Yeosang didn't even look at him. He had been staring at the wall for several days now.

This was one of the things Yunho didn't envy about the Soulmate bond. It was like Yeosang's life force was tied to Hongjoong's...

"Think of the baby. This isn't good for him." The beta tried again. That was the only thing that got Yeosang to function.

He blinked slowly, then reached for the plate of food in front of him and picked at it slowly. A little bit of his color returned as he started to eat, which made Yunho feel a little better.

Knowing the beta wanted some time to himself again, Yunho left and made his way to the living room.

Mingi was sitting on the couch with Gunner nestled into his chest on one side and Avayla on the other while blankly staring at the tv. It looked like they had picked some random movie to watch just to use as a form of distraction.

Yunho felt his heart breaking a little at how red Avayla's eyes were. Being a young alpha was hard for her. She had been struggling controlling her emotions, especially when Theo collapsed during a hunt.

The entire pack felt a little lost with their head alpha and second in command out of commission.

"Alright girls, come on." San said from another room. Lizbeth and Lorelai trailed behind him, their small hands holding onto his shirt, as he led them down to their room. Their hair was wet, indicating they had just taken a bath or a shower.

That was the other thing. All the parents were taking extra care to make sure the kids stayed clean. At least the youngest four.

Maria had made special soap for them to use that was supposed to be cleansing for the body, but also fight any sickness and help keep them healthy.

After a few minutes, he came back with both girls in comfortable pajamas and they joined Mingi on the couch.

Yunho went back to the other rooms and pushed open the door to Riley's. The young alpha was hugging a pillow. His eyes flicked up to Yunho. "Hi Uncle Yun." He whispered.

"Hey." Yunho moved to sit on the bed with him. "How are you doing?"

Riley sniffed in response and held his pillow tighter. "Trying to stay strong..."

"Oh honey." Yunho leaned over and pulled Riley to him. The young alpha moved instantly to wrap his arms and legs around the beta and shoved his face into Yunho's chest. "It's ok. It's ok to give in sometimes. We are all worried right now."

"What am I supposed to do? Dad is sick... and Mommy is..."

"I know." Yunho gently rubbed the back of Riley's head. "Mommy is struggling too. They told you about their bond, right?" Riley nodded and whimpered a little. "Then you know why this is so hard on him. We just need to take this one day at a time."

Riley nodded into his chest.

"The others are watching a movie, would you like to go join them?"

The boy nodded again and Yunho stood with him still in his arms.

Mingi gave him a small smile when he noticed them walking into the room, and Yunho sat down on the end of the couch. Riley shifted just a little bit so he could watch the tv, but kept his head on Yunho's shoulder.

.

.

.

.

Wooyoung sat next to Jongho's head and tried to keep himself together. He hated seeing the alpha in this kind of pain.

He didn't like seeing any of them in pain really, but Jongho was different.

The omega dipped his cloth in a basin of cool water nearby and dabbed at the alpha's head. The younger whimpered a little in response.

"I just don't get it." Maria said from the corner.

She had been pouring over the Ultima books for days now, trying to find something that would help with this sickness.

They had talked about brewing up the cure again, but she didn't think that would do anything because it was meant for physical ailments, not a disease.

Plus it wasn't winter time, so getting the winter snowbells would be nearly impossible.

Kenneth moved to stand behind her and rubbed her shoulders. "You need to take a break my love."

"No, Wooyoung can't do this on his own. Although, I'm really not comfortable with you being here." She said, giving the omega a stern look.

He knew exactly what she was talking about, but Wooyoung had a feeling that he was the least likely to get sick. Even if the cure wouldn't work for them now, something in his gut told him that it would protect him through this.

"I'm going to be fine Maria." He looked back at her, nodding once.

She got the message and sighed heavily. "Fine, just a short nap." She allowed Kenneth to help her up and into the next room.

Wooyoung would be lying if he said he wasn't worried about the older pair. The sickness attacked the elderly and the youngest the hardest, but they seemed to be doing ok for right now.

Maria had been slowing down a bit though...

"Woo?"

The omega looked down to see Jongho's eyes fluttering open. "Take it easy. How are you feeling?"

"Like shit..." Jongho groaned, turning his head away to cover up the string of coughs that attacked him. Then he looked down and cupped the back of Theo's head.

The beta had been sleeping at Jongho's side ever since he had fallen ill.

Wooyoung dabbed at Jongho's forehead again and felt his heart flutter just a little at the soft smile he got in return. "Thank you." The alpha hummed. He grabbed Wooyoung's hand and brought it so it was cupping his cheek.

The omega let his thumb drift back and forth as he watched Jongho nuzzled into his palm. He could feel the alpha relaxing almost immediately.

"You don't need to thank me. I'm happy to help." Wooyoung bent forward to kiss Jongho's forehead, leaving his lips there longer than normal, before moving to check on Seonghwa.

The oldest was sleeping uneasily, his head rocking back and forth in his pillow.

Wooyoung sat next to him and started to rub his forehead, trying to calm down his uneasy mind. He could feel Jongho watching him and focused on Seonghwa even more.

Hongjoong let out a soft grunt in his sleep as he rolled over.

"It worked, didn't it?" Jongho said softly.,

Wooyoung froze, not sure what the alpha was implying but he had a guess.

"Have you told San yet?"

He knew...

Wooyoung's shoulders slumped as he kept rubbing Seonghwa's head.

"No. I wanted to wait for everyone to get better." Wooyoung whispered. "It doesn't feel right to celebrate anything right now."

"When did you find out?"

"Maria confirmed it two days ago." Wooyoung looked at him. Jongho had a sad smile on. "She keeps trying to get me to leave, but I don't want to. I can't."

Jongho just nodded and turned back to Theo, who had moved a little closer to him. "It's not fair... He shouldn't have to suffer through this."

"None of you should. I-" Wooyoung paused and tilted his head.

Then he scrambled off Seonghwa's bed and ran to the desk in the corner and started flipping through the books.

There was one thing he had noticed in there that was so simple, maybe he had disregarded it.

Coughing came from the corner and Wooyoung looked to see Hongjoong curling in on himself and grabbing the towel he kept by his pillow. The cough was watery and thick...

Abandoning the book, Wooyoung hurried over to comfort his head alpha during his episode. Hongjoong gave him a grateful look before groaning and closing his eyes. "S-San...gie?"

"Yeosang is doing fine. You need to focus on getting better." Wooyoung said gently, smiling a little when Hongjoong arched an eyebrow, even with his eyes closed. "Ok fine, he will be fine once you're better."

The alpha huffed and nodded weakly.

Wooyoung ran a wet cloth over his forehead again and stayed until the alpha had fallen back to sleep. Then he returned to the desk and flipped through the book again.

His eyes flew furiously over the pages.

He slapped a hand over his mouth to muffle his excitement when he found was he was looking for, then ran from the room.

"Maria!" The omega called from outside her door while knocking on it. He pushed it open and froze when he heard the sound of coughing. "Maria?"

She looked pale and had one hand over her chest while Kenneth was rubbing her back. "I'm fine." Maria's voice was hoarse. "Just a frog in my throat." She waved Wooyoung off and coughed a couple of more times. "That's better. What is it honey?" Her voice was still weak and she swayed where she sat.

Kenneth didn't blink once as he watched her.

Wooyoung hesitated, not liking what he saw, but she had her usual smile on her face so he pushed it aside for now. "I think I know what we can do to help. At least I hope. What if we give them this boost potion?" He stepped forward and handed her the book. "It's meant to boost your immune system. So what if instead of attacking the virus, we provide more for the body to fight it?"

Maria's eyes lit up as she read over the spell. "It's worth a shot. And your judgement has proven to be good so far. Get a list together and send someone to get the items as soon as possible. The faster we can start getting this into our systems, the better." She reached up and cupped Wooyoung's cheek. "Good job."

He beamed and hurried out of the room to fill the others in on their plan.

For the first time, hope could be seen in the pack's eyes as the new idea was presented to them. Even Yeosang came out to join them. Riley ran straight to his side when he saw the beta and Yeosang spent several minutes comforting his son.

"Who wants to run into town and get these? We need them as soon as possible." Wooyoung looked around.

"I will." Yunho stepped forward and held out his hand for the list.

"I'll go with him." Mingi volunteered. "Will you be ok by yourself?" He asked, looking at San.

The alpha nodded while hugging the twins closer to him. "We will be fine. Hurry."

Wooyoung watched them go from the porch before returning to the room with his sick family and taking a seat by Jongho's side again.

This had to work...


	9. 8

Mingi did the best he could to keep everyone calm and under control in the house while Wooyoung and Maria worked tirelessly to brew what they were calling the 'antidote'.

He had his doubts, but at this point he would move mountains to have Seonghwa in his arms again... he felt so lost without his omega by his side, even if it was just to hear him nag.

Yunho was a nervous wreck the entire time, so the two of them were the ones that went hunting most of the time. It helped to keep both of them distracted and get their energy out.

_That one over there._ Mingi jerked his head at a larger bull elk standing off to the side. _Think you can handle herding him to the side._

Yunho rolled his eyes playfully and crouched low to the ground to circle around the elk.

Mingi watched as he slowly disappeared and let his ears fall back. The beta hardly spoke anymore, instead electing to show his emotions through his eyes or gestures.

The alpha knew it was because Yunho was afraid of snapping.

He kept low to the ground, using the shadows to hide in, while waiting for Yunho to drive the elk in his direction.

It didn't take long.

A low snarl could be heard in the distance. The elk scattered, trumpeting in alarm as Yunho jumped in between the bull and his herd.

The animal flinched to the side in alarm and let Yunho keep him parted from the rest of the herd. But he quickly came to his senses and spun around, lowering his antlers in an attempt to keep Yunho at bay.

That was his mistake though, because Mingi was able to rush in and go straight for the neck. He let his momentum carry him under the elk and onto his back as he slid through the underbrush, forcing the elk to the ground.

Yunho jumped forward to hold the creature down while Mingi readjusted his grip and yanked his head to the side.

_Too easy._ He chuckled.

The beta trotted around the elk and started to lick at Mingi's muzzle, cleaning off the blood gathered there.

Mingi returned the favor by nuzzling against Yunho's neck and licking him a few times. _Let's head back. I'm sure everyone is getting hungry._

Yunho huffed and the pair of them worked to drag the elk back to their home.

They had to discard it in the middle of the open space for their yard, however, when they felt stress flooding out of their home.

Mingi shifted immediately and stumbled into his shorts before bursting into the house.

San was holding Wooyoung off to the side while Avayla was trying to comfort Gunner and Riley.

The alpha ran to his kids and knelt next to them. "What happened?"

Avayla looked at him with tear-filled eyes. "Th-The twins..."

Everyone was silent as her words sank in.

Yunho rushed to Wooyoung and pulled him and San into a tight hung, trying to comfort the couple as Maria came shuffling down the hall. She looked exhausted. "Alright dears, I have them situated in bed. Wooyoung, I need you to stay focused honey, the antidote is almost finished."

The omega sniffed a couple of times, but balled his fists and nodded, following her back to the kitchen.

Gunner turned and buried his face in Mingi's neck. "Papa I don't want to get sick... When will they get better?"

Mingi held him close and brought Avayla to him too. "Soon. Maria and Wooyoung are working on making them better." He looked up and saw San's broken face as he slowly slid down the wall and clutched his hair.

Yunho sat next to him and kept an arm wrapped around his shoulders.

They needed something to give them hope now more than ever. They were all affected by this sickness in different ways now...

It had to work.

.

.

.

.

When the potion was finally finished, Maria immediately started on another batch. Now that everything was cut, smashed, peeled, or sliced like they needed, the brewing process would go much faster.

Wooyoung brought the first dose to Hongjoong since he had been sick the longest.

The alpha could barely keep his eyes open as he tried to drink, but Wooyoung was patient as he helped Hongjoong sit up and then tipped the cup for him to drink out of. He wiped away any that couldn't stay in Hongjoong's mouth and sat with him for several minutes to make sure it settled.

"Thank you." Hongjoong placed his hand over Wooyoung's and gave him a weak smile before closing his eyes and sinking down in the bed again.

Wooyoung leaned forward and kissed his forehead before going over to Seonghwa's bed and repeating the action. The omega had a harder time staying awake to swallow, but Wooyoung was persistent and kept shaking him awake so he could finish. "That's it Hwa, you're almost done." He whispered, tilting the glass a little more. Seonghwa cringed and scrunched up his face, but managed to finish.

He sighed and rolled into his side, covering his mouth as he started coughing again. Wooyoung leaned over and grabbed a rag to try and catch as much of the blood as possible.

Jongho put up a different kind of fight when Wooyoung got to him. "Kids first." He rasped, pushing the glass away. He seemed to be the only one who could stay awake for long periods of time.

"You've been sick longer." Wooyoung tried to move the glass to Jongho's lips again.

"Kids. First." Jongho insisted.

Wooyoung had to hold back his wolf to keep from snapping, but he obliged. He moved to the other side of the bed and gently shook Theo awake.

The young beta looked around and tried to lift a shaky head up. Both Jongho and Wooyoung helped him to sit up and Wooyoung made a motion that Theo needed to drink.

They were too weak to use their wolves... So Theo had been cut off from everyone, but he understood and let Wooyoung hold the glass to his lips.

Jongho rubbed his back the entire time and helped him to stay sitting. Then once his son was finished, Jongho pulled Theo into his chest and kissed his forehead several times.

Theo sighed and let his head rest on Jongho's shoulder, nuzzling into his neck a little.

When Wooyoung was sure he would be ok, he hurried to where his girls were curled up in his giant bean bag. They had run out of room for another bed, but the bean bag fit perfectly in the corner, and the girls were small enough that they were able to cuddle into it nicely.

Since they had just fallen ill, they were able to drink the antidote just fine. "This is going to help us, right Mama?" Lizbeth asked as Lorelai leaned into her.

"It should, baby." Wooyoung ran his fingers through her hair and smiled at the gold flecks in her eyes. She still had hope. "Now you just need to get plenty of rest ok? Both of you."

"Yes Mama." They said at the same time.

Wooyoung leaned over and pulled them into his arms. They both wrapped their arms around his neck and he could feel their chests vibrating. They hadn't lost their wolves yet.

Maybe they could be healed before they lost contact.

When he was positive the girls weren't going to have any adverse side affects to the antidote, the omega made his way back to the stubborn alpha on the bed behind him.

Jongho gave him a crooked smile as he opened his mouth.

"You're a pain, you know that?" Wooyoung scolded, but he tipped the glass with Jongho's portion so the alpha could drink.

He could feel Jongho's eyes on him the entire time, but he ignored it. "I know you're not really mad at me." The younger teased when he had finished.

"Yes I am. I don't need you getting all noble on me." The omega huffed and crossed his arms.

"I take offense to that." Jongho sighed and leaned back into his pillow. Theo scooted closer so his back was flush with his father's side.

"Good. Because you're just as important as they are."

Jongho started to speak, but a coughing fit interrupted him and Wooyoung handed him a cloth to cover his mouth. He rubbed the alpha's head to try and comfort him, then turned when he heard a small sound come from the corner.

Lorelai was just rolling over. Lizbeth wrapped her arms around her sister's waist and yawned before smacking her lips and settling in again.

"I'm sorry they got sick." Jongho whispered.

Wooyoung turned to see him watching the twins with a soft smile on his face. "It's not your fault." He reached up to cup Jongho's face. "None of this is your fault, so stop blaming yourself because I know you are."

The younger's lips pushed out in a pout, but he leaned into Wooyoung's touch at the same time.

"Get some rest. I'll be back in a little bit with the next dose."

Jongho just nodded and rolled over to press his lips to the back of Theo's head.

Wooyoung returned to the kitchen to see Maria leaning against the counter. "Ok, go sit down, I can take over." He said, guiding her to the couch.

"Sorry honey, these old bones are wearing down." He teased and patted his hands a couple of times.

"Did you take a dose yet?"

"Yes. Make sure everyone else gets some." She said, closing her eyes as she leaned into the couch cushion.

Wooyoung nodded and started handing out drinks to everyone else in the house. They were going to try and heal the others while making sure that no one else got sick.

Yunho and San accepted their without a word, and the alpha took Wooyoung's hand for just a moment before sending him off to help the others.

Yeosang was his last stop. Riley had returned to his side and the two of them were watching a movie while cuddled up in bed.

"Here Sangie, drink this. You too Riley." Wooyoung handed them their glasses.

"Did Hongjoong get some?" Yeosang turned his head to look at him with wide, worried eyes.

"Yes, I gave it to him first." Wooyoung sat on the side of the bed and placed a hand on the beta's leg. "And I promise I will until he is better."

The older gave him a grateful smile as he rubbed his belly. "I think we can expect Rhodey to come early..."

"How do you know?"

"I can just feel it. It feels like he is getting restless." Yeosang sighed and let his head fall against the wall.

Wooyoung chewed on his lip before nodding slowly. "I'll make sure Maria has everything ready, just in case."

"Thank you, for everything Youngie. I don't know where we'd be without you." Yeosang turned and gave him a genuine smile. His first one in weeks.

"You don't need to thank me. I know you all would do the same for me. I'm just happy I can help." He said before leaving the room.

Wooyoung worked to start the next batch. They were going to try to give a new dose every couple of hours to keep it in their system, so there was always going to be something brewing.

Which meant sleepless nights on the horizon for him.

No one else seemed to have a problem though, which made him happy that the others could relax.

Mingi was asleep on the couch with his kids curled up at his sides. Maria and Kenneth took up the other end and were dozing peacefully, while San and Yunho had fallen asleep against the wall.

Wooyoung hoped they would all get some good rest.

He, on the other hand, opened the fridge and pulled out a root hiding in the back that he had bought in secret. It worked like an energy boost and would help him stay awake. The potion needed constant monitoring.

Nibbling on just a small piece, Wooyoung stepped outside to get some fresh air, knowing that would wake him up as well.

As long as he took the root in moderation, he should be ok. He had found it in the books from Ultima. On it's own, the root was harmless. The only real side affect is that he could collapse randomly when his body couldn't process anymore of it and needed an official recharge. There's no saying how long he'd sleep for.

But he needed to watch what he ate. If the wrong thing got mixed with the root, it could leave him unconscious for days. And eating too much of it could be fatal.

Wooyoung knew the risks and was willing to take them. Just like with the cure, he had faith everything would be ok.

Already he could feel the energy returning to him and he felt more awake.

He smiled and stretched, looking out over the mist covered yard.

Then he paused when he saw a flash of yellow.

Wooyoung blinked a few times and leaned forward, trying to see the flash again. It had almost looked like a pair of wolf eyes, but he couldn't seem to find them again.

No one had sensed anyone crossing in to their territory, so he must have imagined it.

The omega sighed and rubbed the back of his neck, turning his back on the forest and stepping back in the house to continue to monitor the next batch of antidote while everyone else slept.


	10. 9

Yeosang rolled over in bed and flinched a little at the pain in his back. It was getting harder and harder for him to function. Rhodey was just about ready, and this was the worst time that he could come... He had been having Braxton Hicks contractions off and on for the past few days too.

Although Maria had high hopes that the antidote was working. No one else had fallen in for a week and the others seemed to have stabilized, if not even improved.

Hongjoong and Seonghwa weren't sleeping as much, and the twins hadn't gotten to the point where they were coughing up blood.

Theo was the only one who slept almost all day, but Maria and Wooyoung felt that was because he was still so young and his body was working hard to fight the disease.

They were all thankful, in a way, that he had Jongho there to help him. Yunho was having a hard time staying calm still, and spent a lot of time outside by himself.

Mingi had tried to comfort him, and so did Wooyoung when he was free. The younger omega was the only one who really seemed to help.

Yeosang tired to push himself out of bed, figuring he might as well get out of bed and walk around now that he was up. He didn't even know what time it was right now, but it felt like it was early.

As he rotated his body to roll out of bed, he froze as liquid ran down his legs. "Oh shit... Really Rhodey?" He groaned. "M-Maria!" He tried to call out, but a contraction hit him hard and he nearly fell to the floor. "Rhodey, I swear if you make this as hard on me as your brother did I'm never speaking to you again." He groaned.

His door flew open and Mingi came running in. "I was next door with the kids, are you o... Oh!" The alpha's eyes widened a little. "Is it time?"

"No, I'm just enjoying this glorious pain coursing through my body." Yeosang snapped. "Yes it's time! Get Maria please..."

Mingi nodded and ran from the room.

The beta hissed again and rubbed his stomach. "Go easy on me please... I don't have Daddy here to help..."

He didn't have to wait long before both Maria and Wooyoung came into the room, followed by Riley and Avayla.

"Mama is it time?" Riley asked running to Yeosang's side.

"Yes, go stay with Gunner and we will get you once it's over, ok?" Yeosang said, trying to keep his voice as sweet as possible, even though another contraction wracked his body.

Riley bit his lip and looked like he was going to say something, but like the good boy he was, he turned and walked out of the room after kissing Yeosang's cheek.

He smiled after his son, then tried to stand.

"Take it slow." Wooyoung came to his side and helped him not his feet. "Ava honey can you work on changing the sheets please?"

The young alpha nodded once and vanished around the corner.

Maria came to help him undress and placed her hands on his stomach. Yeosang took note of how pale she looked, even as his eyes fluttered close from the comfort her hands brought.

"Why don't you go rest, I can handle this." Wooyoung said to the beta, placing a gentle hand on her shoulder.

"No, no. I'm fine. You need me here." She said.

Yeosang exchanged a quick glance with Wooyoung, but he quickly scrunched his eyes shut as another contraction came.

"Alright honey, lets get you undressed. I think this is going to be a fast one, but I'm worried it's happening too fast. I may need to slow it down." Maria rubbed his stomach gently.

He leaned forward to hold onto her shoulders while stepping out of his pants and boxers for Wooyoung. They left his shirt on for now, which he was thankful for because it was a long one.

Avayla came back into he room and stated tearing the sheets off the bed and replacing them with special ones Maria had bought for times like this.

"Good girl." Maria praised. "Make sure it's on there nice and tight. Once you're done, go ahead and get a bowl of ice and a handful of towels."

Wooyoung helped guide Yeosang back onto the bed and propped him up with some pillows. "I wish Joong was here..." The beta whimpered, pressing his face into Wooyoung's chest.

The younger held him close. "I know. But he's going to be here after to help you take care of Rhodey, don't you worry Sangie."

"Yeah and he's already causing a ruckus in the other room." Mingi grumbled as he walked into the room suddenly.

Yeosang looked up and covered his mouth when he saw Mingi sporting the start of a black eye.

"Sorry Yeosang, but I kind of had to restrain him... He's not very happy right now, but I didn't know what else to do." Mingi bit his lip and looked down.

"Alphas." Maria huffed as she hurried out of the room.

"It's ok, Mingi... Are you ok?" Yeosang asked, then winced as another contraction came.

The taller chuckled nervously. "For such a small alpha he sure packs a punch. I'll be alright. Can I get you anything?"

Inhaling and exhaling several times, Yeosang had to wait for the pain to pass before he could answer. "No, not unless you have something that can make... this go away." He hissed, but gave the alpha a crooked smile. "Or maybe just a hand to hold?" He asked, a slight blush coming to his cheek.

Mingi gave a relieved smile and moved to the other side of the bed to sit next to the beta and took his hand.

Wooyoung nodded in approval before going to help Maria and Avayla finish getting everything prepped.

Maria had started burning some herbs that helped to slow down Yeosang's contractions, which he appreciated to an extent. He wasn't ready to experience that so quickly. She also helped relax him by constantly rubbing his stomach. "Now little man, you need go easy on your mom here. It's been a rough couple of months. Settle down just a bit for us, ok?"

Yeosang chuckled when Rhodey moved and started to kick.

"Yeah, he's ready." Maria said softly. Then she leaned over to check how dilated he was. "We are almost there, but if he can hold on a little longer it will be easier for you." She reached over to rub the side of Yeosang's head.

He still didn't like how pale she looked. And her eyes kept drooping... But he trusted her, so if she said she was ok, then he believed her.

Avayla would run to refresh the ice whenever needed, but as things got closer, she took to sitting on Yeosang's other side so she could be out of the way.

A couple hours later, Yeosang was finally at the point where he was done. Maria removed the herbs from the room and Rhodey was moving a lot.

"God, why did I decide to go through this again?" Yeosang groaned as his head fell back onto his pillow. He heard Mingi hiss as he squeezed the alpha's hand, but at this point he didn't care. He shouldn't be the only one suffering.

"Because you are going to love what comes from it." Wooyoung coos as he hands Avayla a new rag.

"Yeah Uncle Sangie, you're an amazing parent so you know this with be worth it." Avayla smiled at him and ran her hand through his hair. "You can do this."

Yeosang tried to smile at the young alpha, but another contraction hit and he gritted his teeth.

"Alright honey," Maria said. "Time to start pushing." She helped Wooyoung hold the beta's legs open and the two of them bent forward to keep an eye on things.

It felt so wrong to be doing this without Hongjoong here, but Yeosang couldn't wait any more. He needed his baby out of him.

Yeosang cried out as he started to feel like he was splitting in half. The pressure started to build and he was already feeling tired. He kind of registered Mingi speaking to him, but there was too much pressure in his ears now and all he could focus on was trying to push.

He had no idea how much time had passed when he felt a huge release come and he instantly relaxed into the pillows.

"Alright honey, the head is out, don't give up on us now." Maria called from the end of the bed.

Yeosang groaned. He was so tired... He could barely even hold his head up. He wasn't a strong physically as he should have been to give birth. Hongjoong being sick had taken so much out of him...

"I can't..." He exhaled and swallowed. Every inch of his body was covered in sweat, he felt like he would never be clean again. "I c-can't..."

"Yes you can, keep pushing honey. You can do this." Maria fixed him with a hard gaze.

"I n-need J-Joong..." He sobbed. Mingi was one thing, but he needed his mate. He needed his alpha...

_S..._

"Yeosang you need to keep pushing, you need to get him out of you. For both your safety and his." Wooyoung said, his voice getting harsh.

_San..._

The beta took a deep breath and tried to push, but it was too hard. His head fell back again and he heard Maria saying something about needing to operate.

_Sangie you need to keep going baby._ Hongjoong's voice rang loud and clear in his head.

Yeosang gasped and covered his mouth as a fresh wave of tears came. "Hongjoong?"

_Baby I need you to stay strong. I'm there with you. Keep pushing!_

He nodded and tightened his grip on Mingi's hand before yelling through the next push. His voice cracked and his throat felt raw, but he would keep going. He had to, he couldn't let his alpha down.

_That's it love. You can do it._

Yeosang whimpered, loving the sound of Hongjoong's voice in his head as he continued to push. He could feel the stretch happening again and knew that the shoulders were next. He just had to get through this and then Maria and Wooyoung could help with it he rest.

_I love you, Yeosang. You've got this. Push baby._

A few strong pushes later and Yeosang collapsed into his pillows, panting heavily as he heard Rhodey crying somewhere in front of him.

All other sound was gone.

He tried to keep his eyes open as he searched for his son, needing to feel him against his skin.

The beta hardly registered Maria and Wooyoung pressing on his stomach to help with the after birth, or getting him cleaned up, or Mingi pulling off his t-shirt and drying off his wet chest.

And then he was there. A small bundle of warmth nestled into his chest, smacking his lips over and over.

Yeosang sobbed as he placed a shaking hand over Rhodey's back and bent his neck to kiss the top of his head. He had thick brown curls and his nose looked like he got it from Hongjoong.

_How is he?_ His alpha asked gently.

_Perfect. Absolutely perfect. He has your nose, and I think he got my lips and hair._ Yeosang answered, trying to keep his voice strong. He could feel how sad Hongjoong was through their bond that he couldn't be there... and he knew he feelings transferred the same way to the alpha. _How are you feeling?_

_Better. I think the antidote is working._

_You have no idea how happy that makes me. I've missed you so much._ Yeosang smiled down at Rhodey, not even noticing that he was now alone.

_And I, you. We will need to have someone babysit for us._ Hongjoong's voice had a suggestive tone to it that sent a chill down Yeosang's spine.

_I like the sound of that. You need to be back to full health first though. Some really wants to meet you too._

_I promise I will. I could never leave you behind. The fact that my wolf is back is a great sign. I will be seeing you soon._ Hongjoong spoke gently, filling each and every one of his words with all the love he had for Yeosang.

It warmed the beta's heart as he smiled at Rhodey.

_And Sangie?_

_Yes my love?_

_I'm so proud of you._


	11. 10

About a week after Rhodey's birth, everyone was up and on their feet. Hongjoong still wasn't at full health because he had been hit the hardest by the illness, but he was well enough that he could enjoy his new son.

And he was clingier than ever before.

Yeosang was hardly allowed to leave the couch without the head alpha whining like a child. Even Riley made fun of him for it, but only a couple of times, because he missed his family being together too.

Yunho cried for hours once he was reunited with his alpha and son, and Theo never left the beta's side. Unless it was to be with Avayla.

It was a tense time for all of them as they tried to figure out the best way to mesh as a family again.

Seonghwa was overwhelmed as well. Mingi always had one hand on him and had a few moments where he would growl at anyone who got to close.

It made the omega roll his eyes, but at the same time he had missed the attention. He had missed his alpha more than he would ever admit to anyone else, only because he still had his own pride that he had to protect.

Seonghwa didn't remember much of his time being sick. It was all flashes of being awake and seeing Wooyoung and Maria bustling around the room.

He was vaguely aware of when Theo was brought it, and then the twins. His heart had broken once the sickness affected the kids and he was terrified that it would spread to his own. But they were strong, that was for sure.

Avayla was the first one to hug him when he came out of the room. His daughter sobbed into his neck as her platinum blonde hair fell in sheets around his shoulder.

Then Gunner had wormed his way in between them and buried his face in Seonghwa's stomach.

Mingi had been respectful at that time and let the kids take precedence, but the first chance he got he pulled Seonghwa into their room and pulled him into a death grip.

"I was so worried I'd lose you." His alpha admitted, his voice trembling.

"I was scared too." Seonghwa clung to him and fisted the back of his shirt. He inhaled deeply and soaked in the powerful mint scent rolling off his alpha. God he had missed that smell.

Mingi shoved his head to the side and growled as he started to nuzzle the mark on Seonghwa's neck, sending a chill down the omega's spine.

The older whimpered, gladly exposing his neck even more to get the feeling he had been craving for weeks now.

His alpha taking possession of him.

It was like he needed it to survive. That simple action breathed new life into Seonghwa, and if he wasn't still so weak, he would beg his alpha to take him right there.

But standing took its toll on anyone who had been ill, except for the twins. They were able to bounce back the quickest, although that didn't stop them from clinging to their parents.

Kenneth and Maria had left as soon as everyone was back on their feet, wanting to give them time to bond and reunite as a family.

Seonghwa had tried to insist that they stay, but Maria just waved him off. "We have stayed too long already. It's about time we stop intruding on your family."

"You are our family Maria." Seonghwa said, pulling her into a hug.

A little whimper came from the old beta and she flinched a little at the touch, which Seonghwa found odd. "Are you ok?"

"Yes, yes honey. I'm just tired. I'll probably go sleep for a month." She said, winking at him.

But Seonghwa didn't believe her. She was extremely pale and was walking slower than normal. He watched her as she went around and hugged each of the kids one by one.

When she got to Avayla, she cupped her chin and pressed their foreheads together, smiling briefly before hugging her and repeating the action with Theo.

Then she said goodbye to each of the pack members, ending with Wooyoung. The omega blushed when she whispered something in his ears but then smiled and nodded.

Kenneth stood by the door the entire time, watching her every move.

Seonghwa was the last to get a hug as he stood by the doorway. "You really don't need to leave Maria."

She chuckled and made a small grunting noise before reaching up and cupping his cheek. "Yes, I do. It's time. I love you honey. All of you."

The omega bent over to hug her, and she held him tight. "And I love you, Maria. Call us if you need anything, ok?"

Maria pulled back and patted his cheek a couple of times before letting Kenneth help her out of the house.

"Everyone?" Wooyoung said from the front of the room.

Seonghwa turned to look at him and saw him staring at the ground and rubbing his foot back and forth on the carpet.

"Since we are all together again, I have something that I wanted to say." He looked up at San, who tilted his head and furrowed his eyebrows in confusion.

Jongho hid his head behind Yunho's back, covering his mouth.

"What's going on Youngie?" Hongjoong asked from where he was nestled into Yeosang's side. He had one hand lifted up and had been glowing while watching Rhodey grab his finger.

The young omega took a deep breath and locked eyes with San. "I'm pregnant." He pulled up his shirt to show off the small bump that was starting to form.

The room was silent for a moment as his words sank in, but then San jumped up and grabbed his omega. "We are having another baby!" He cheered as he spun Wooyoung in circles.

"Did you know?" Yunho asked, rounding on Jongho, who had been laughing behind his back. Jongho looked at him with wide eyes and looked like he wanted to run away. "YOU DID! And you didn't tell me?"

"Babe I- Ow!" Jongho yelped as Yunho smacked him on the side of the head. The alpha grumbled and pushed his lips out in a pout as he watched his mate stand up to hug his best friend.

"Don't be too mad at him, you know I can't hide things from Jongho, he figured it out from how Maria was treating me." Wooyoung said, leaning his head against Yunho's chest. "I didn't want to say anything until everyone was healthy."

"We are going to have a baby brother or sister?" Lizbeth said, running forward to tug at the hem of Wooyoung's shirt.

"I want a sister!" Lorelai said, jumping up and down.

Wooyoung knelt to pull them into a hug. "We will know in a couple of months what the gender is. And then we can start planning his or her room. Would you like that?"

"Yes!" They said at the same time.

Seonghwa smiled at the way Wooyoung was absolutely glowing now that he could share his news. It must have been hard keeping that a secret for a little over two months. He had to be about ten weeks by now.

"What do you think?" Mingi's deep voice whispered in his ear as his alpha wrapped his arms around Seonghwa's stomach.

"About what?" Seonghwa tilted his head to look up at the taller.

Mingi just jerked his head at where Wooyoung was now hugging Theo and Avayla. Seonghwa smiled and nodded, patting Mingi's arms.

\---

Late one night, a few days later, Seonghwa sat up in bed and looked around.

Something was wrong. He couldn't figure out what it was, but something didn't feel right.

He slipped out of Mingi's arms and rubbed his arms with his hands as he walked to check on his kids.

Gunner was sprawled out on his bed, one arm and leg hanging off the side. Seonghwa crept forward and tucked him back under his blanket before kissing his forehead.

When he poked his head into Avayla's room, he stood there for a moment just smiling at what he saw.

One of the few moments that Avayla showed any sign of not being an alpha was when she was with Theo. And right now, she had her face pressed to his chest and was curled up in his arms. Theo had his forehead pressed into her hair while a smile tugged at his lips.

With everything looking fine in there, Seonghwa stepped into the kitchen and stood there to just listen to the house.

He didn't sense anything out of place or hear anything strange.

"I feel it too."

Seonghwa slapped a hand to his mouth as he yelped and turned around to see Hongjoong walking over to him, using the wall for support. "Don't do that." The omega hissed, but he froze when he saw the serious look on the alpha's face.

"Something's not right. I-" He stopped when there was a knock on the front door.

The only time Hongjoong didn't sense someone crossing the territory line was when it was someone he trusted.

The couple exchanged a nervous glance before Hongjoong walked to the front door. "Kenneth? What's wrong?"

"May I come in?" The beta said, his voice low and forlorn.

"Of course." Hongjoong stepped to the side.

Seonghwa felt himself starting to shake as Kenneth stepped inside. His eyes were swollen, and he was spinning his hat in his hands, clutching the rim over and over. "K-Kenneth?"

The older swallowed and looked up. "She's gone."

Seonghwa held onto the counter in front of him as his legs started to shake.

Hongjoong stepped forward and stood in front of the beta. "What do you mean? Kenneth, what happened?"

Kenneth placed a hand over his heart, and that's when Seonghwa saw that the mating mark on his neck was faded...

"The... The potion never worked on her. I knew she was affected, but she said she could push through it and it just affected her differently because she was older. Just like it hit Theo a little differently. When we got home, she... She... She couldn't get out of bed anymore. And then just a short time ag-go... I..." He reached up to feel the mark on his neck.

Both Seonghwa and Hongjoong knew what he meant. He felt Maria leave him through the mating mark.

The beta started to cry as he sank to the ground and his entire body trembled. Hongjoong knelt next to him and pulled him into his arms.

"I-I'm sor-ry... I d-didn't know where else to go." Kenneth sobbed, clinging to the alpha.

Seonghwa covered his mouth as the realization hit.

Maria was gone... And she had known she wasn't going to make it. That's why she had said her goodbyes the way she did.

"No..." He whimpered, falling to the floor as well.

It took only a few more minutes for Mingi and Yeosang to appear. And soon the rest of the original eight.

Mingi held onto Seonghwa as the omega tried to fight the sobs, afraid he would wake the children.

The children... How were they going to tell the kids?

"No!" Wooyoung said once he was told. One hand flew to his mouth and the other to his stomach. "N-No... This can't be true... Please say it isn't true. We n-need her."

San ran to his side and pulled Wooyoung into him, pressing the omega's face into his neck. "Shhhh, it's ok baby." He said, but even he couldn't keep his voice from shaking.

But Seonghwa had to agree with Wooyoung. They needed Maria... She had been a part of their lives for almost twenty years now. She had been there and helped raise every one of their kids. She was the only woman in Avayla, Lizbeth, and Lorelai's life...

What were they going to do without her?

Kenneth had gone silent a long time ago. He just stared at the floor from where he was situated between Hongjoong and Yeosang. But his lower lip would still tremble occasionally.

He looked so lost. And there was nothing that any of them could do to help. He had lost his mate...

"When should we tell the kids?" Hongjoong asked, finally breaking the silence.

"After I leave, please." Kenneth whispered. "I... I can't... I can't see their faces. I know I wasn't as close with them. And I know it's the cowardly thing to do..." He bent forward and buried his face in hands as he started to cry.

This brought on a new wave of tears from everyone else too as they all rushed to gather around the beta.

It was a comfort to everyone there too. Feeling their pack member's touches soothed their weary souls a tiny bit.

They were always strongest when they were all together.

Seonghwa felt a hand take his, and he looked over to see Yeosang looking at him with watery eyes. He could sense that the beta was worried his pregnancy had been the thing that pushed Maria too far, and Seonghwa shook his head gently.

The group shifted a little as Wooyoung's sobs got a little louder. Both San and Jongho had their arms wrapped around him and Yunho had a hand on the back of the omega's head, while keeping another one on Kenneth's shoulder.

Wooyoung's fear and sadness radiated off him. Maria wasn't going to be there to help him through this pregnancy... They were going to have to figure out how to do it on their own or find another midwife.

The idea didn't sit right with Seonghwa, but he knew they'd have to think about that later.

Kenneth wiped his eyes and went to sit up. "P-Please forgive me..."

Hongjoong gripped the back of his head. "There is nothing to be forgiven. This is hardest on you. What will you do?"

The beta gave him a pained expression. "I d-don't know... I... I can't..."

He didn't want to live without Maria.

Seonghwa could see that much on his face. And the chances of him living much longer without his mate weren't good. Not with how long they had been together. Kenneth had to be battling so many emotions right now. And there was a chance that his wolf had already died...

The pack moved together for another hug.

They were going to lose both of them. Although to some extent, they already had.

As sunlight started to peak through the windows, Kenneth looked at all of them from the door. He met each of their eyes one by one. "Thank you, for giving us a chance. You were our new family. After all we had been through, I'm glad she could spend the last... The last years of her life with you. I couldn't have asked for a better pack to work with."

The eight of them did the best they could to hold in any sound that they wanted to make as they watched the beta gave one final nod before he stepped through the door and closed it behind him.

Seonghwa watched as he walked down their driveway. In human form...

Hongjoong sniffed and pulled Yeosang to him. "I suppose we should go wake the kids. So we can tell them all at once." He said quietly.

Everyone nodded and split off to wake their own children.

Seonghwa took a deep breath as he bent over Gunner's bed. "Honey, I need you to wake up." He said, shaking him a little.

"Mmmmmm, it's too early Mama." He groaned and tried to roll over.

"Gunner." Mingi said. The tone of his voice made the young alpha sit up immediately.

"What's wrong?" He asked, looking at Seonghwa.

"Come out to the living room baby." The omega whispered, knowing he didn't have the strength to speak any louder.

Avayla gave him a questioning look as she passed by Gunner's room, towing a still half asleep Theo behind her.

The only one not present was Rhodey, who thankfully was still sound asleep in his room.

Silence fell like a heavy blanket over the room as everyone sat on the couch, in a chair, or on the floor.

Hongjoong was standing by the fireplace, rubbing the back of his neck.

"What's going on?" Avayla said, her head swiveling between Hongjoong and Seonghwa.

Their head alpha closed his eyes as his lower lip trembled. But he had already agreed to make the announcement, saying it was his duty.

"I... Kenneth came by late last night..." He closed his eyes and let his head fall back as he tried to compose himself.

The parents of the pack all fought to hold back their tears while watching their alpha struggle. It was rare to see him show weakness like this. He was always the strong one.

Then Jongho stood, cupping Theo's chin for a moment, and went to take Hongjoong's hand. He turned to face the rest of the pack. "Maria has passed away." He said softly.

"No..." Avayla gasped, covering her mouth. She turned to look at Seonghwa. The tears flowed freely when she saw the defeated look Seonghwa knew was on his face. "P-Please... No..."

Mingi pulled her into his chest as Jongho's words sank in.

Theo sat on the edge of the couch, staring at the ground with wide eyes. Jongho moved to kneel in front of him and take his hands, while Yunho wrapped an arm around his waist.

The four youngest kinds looked slightly confused as they looked to their parents.

Gunner seemed to get it the quickest as he watched his sister. He looked at Seonghwa and climbed into his lap, hugging his mom.

Yeosang leaned over to run his hands through Riley's hair as he too clung to his mom.

Lizbeth and Lorelai looked at each other, holding hands, before turning back to where Wooyoung was sitting against the couch, sobbing into his hands. They stepped forward and San opened his arms. Lorelai sat in his lap while Lizbeth moved onto Wooyoung's.

Seonghwa reached over to rub the back of Avayla's head as she continued to cry into Mingi's shoulder.

"Where did Kenneth go?" Gunner asked, tilting his head back to look up at Seonghwa.

"He left baby." Seonghwa kissed the top of his head and closed his eyes. "He... When you lose a mate, it takes a different kind of toll on your body. Kenneth isn't going to be around for much longer either. He and Maria... They were very old. And... It's hard to recover from something like this."

"So... If you... Papa would..."

Seonghwa and Mingi exchanged a glance and Seonghwa just held Gunner tighter. Neither knew how to answer him.

They sat there for a long time, doing their best to process the loss and comfort each other.

Just when things were starting to calm down, Avayla shoved herself off the couch and ran out the backdoor, tears still streaming down her face.

Seonghwa went to follow her, but Theo stood and waved his hand back and forth before running after his mate.

Yunho stood and watched them from the door as they all felt them shift and run into the trees.

They had known it was going to be hardest on them. Theo and Avayla had known Maria the longest and had grown up loving her with how much she had been with them as babies.

None of the other kids had had that same kind of treatment.

Seonghwa's broken heart shattered even more when he heard two long, painful howls in the distance.

He turned to Hongjoong, who was also staring at the back door, and waited for him to speak.

Their head alpha glanced around the room. "I know it's going to take time. But we... We will get through this. We all need to support each other and be understanding. Give those two some space, and if any of you are having a rough day, we will all be here to help." His eyes fell to Wooyoung, then over to where Riley was sniffing against Yeosang's shoulder. He pulled his son into his arms and held him close.

He was right though. They would make it through as long as they relied on the strength they had together as a pack.

Somehow.

But Seonghwa would be lying if he said it would happen instantly.

Maria had meant so much to all of them...

He leaned over and rested his head on Mingi's shoulder, bringing Gunner with him.

And they had meant the world to Maria.


	12. 11

The house was a mess as it tried to recover from Maria's passing. Everyone in the pack seemed kind of lost. Even the youngest four were starting to figure out and accept what had happened.

Jongho did the best to keep everyone up and going. Him and Hongjoong both.

As the head alphas they did what they could to stay strong for everyone.

They organized hunting parties, supply runs, and even just times for them to go for a fun time as a family.

And Jongho ended up doing more of it than Hongjoong because the older spent a lot of his time training Riley and taking care of Rhodey.

The new baby's birth had taken a lot out of Yeosang, so he was having a hard time getting up and going most days.

The hardest thing on all of them was how long it took Theo and Avayla to start showing signs of being ok again.

There were a few weeks that the pair of them only came home to sleep, then they would be up again before dawn and go out.

Jongho always had a sense of where they were though. Once he figured out what was going on, he made sure to be up to follow them just long enough to know the area they were headed. And he would always wait for them to come home before he went to bed.

At the end of the third week, he waited up for them, surprising them both by waiting for them in the backyard in his wolf form.

Avayla's white wolf glowed in the moonlight, so did Theo's underbelly.

When they saw Jongho sitting there, they both looked at each other and bowed their heads.

_Papa_... Theo walked forward slowly, looking at the ground.

_You're not in trouble._ Jongho says gently, closing the distance to nuzzle his son's neck. He felt the beta instantly relax, but let out a small whine. _I just wanted to check in and make sure you two are ok._ He glanced at were Avayla was now laying on the ground. Her ears were back and her eyes were closed.

_Papa_... Theo said one more time. His tail drooped and he went to stand over his alpha, licking her head gently.

_I'm sorry Uncle Jongho. We didn't mean to worry you._ Avayla whispered through the link. She leaned into Theo's touch and sighed.

_What's on your mind?_ Jongho circled both of them to make sure neither one was harmed. If anything, Avayla's citrus scent seemed a little stronger, but she was really distressed so that made sense. Did something happen?

Theo? He looked at his son and started to get worried.

_I don't know what to do..._ Avayla said, making the alpha look down at her. _I... I don't know what to do..._ She let out a longer whine as her shoulders started to shake.

Theo instantly stood over her and covered her with his body.

_Do you need me to go get your mom?_ Jongho asked gently.

_That might not be a bad idea Papa_. Theo said, still licking Avayla's head to try and calm her down.

Jongho turned around and ran for the house, shifting on the back porch and quickly slipping on his shorts. If Avayla was acting like this, there had to be something really bothering her. 

_Seonghwa? Can you hear me?_ He tried mind linking to the omega directly, but didn't get an answer.

The alpha stepped inside and was going to go to Seonghwa and Ming's room, when he paused and looked at the couch. "Woo? What are you doing up?"

Wooyoung blinked a couple of times and turned to look up from where he'd been staring at the fire. "I couldn't sleep, so I thought I'd come out here instead of bothering San." He said with a small smile while rubbing a hand over his small belly.

"Woo, that's almost every night for the past couple weeks. What's going on?" Jongho took a step toward him, suddenly torn between getting Seonghwa and helping Wooyoung.

"Nothing, I just couldn't sleep. Is everything ok with you?"

Jongho hesitated, looking over Wooyoung and noticing a small bag sitting next to him. But he felt Theo's distress and instantly forgot about it. "Yeah, I just need to go get Seonghwa. I'll be back to check on you in a bit, ok?"

The older's forehead creased, but he nodded and went back to staring at the fire.

Turning to the other end of the house, Jongho hurried to Seonghwa's door and gently knocked on it. Their hearing was sensitive enough that both men on the other side would be able be able to hear it. "Seonghwa?" He whispered.

Then he listened. The bed creaked and a moment later the blonde was stepping out of the room. "Jongho, what's wrong?" Seonghwa's voice was still scratchy from sleep, making it a little deeper than normal.

"Avayla needs you."

That's all it took. Seonghwa's eyes widened and he followed Jongho to the back yard, ignoring Wooyoung's questions.

The kids had shifted back and were dressed, but they were in the same place Jongho hand left them. Theo's long arms were wrapped around Avayla and she had her nosed pressed against his neck.

Seonghwa hurried over to them and Avayla peered at him, but didn't leave Theo's arms. "Mama..."

"Baby, what's wrong?" Seonghwa asked, reaching out to run his hands through her hair.

"Mama... I..." The young alpha closed her eyes. "I'm scared."

The hairs on the back of Jongho's neck stood on end as he glanced at the omega. What was there to be scared of? He scented the air and there was no sign of any other wolf.

"Ava, honey, what's going on?" Seonghwa's voice turned just a touch harder as he gently demanded an answer from his daughter.

"Mama..." Avayla sniffed several times and took a shaky breath. "I miss M-Maria..."

Jongho felt his heart break a little at the words. He knew that had to have been part of the problem, and when Theo nodded in agreement, the alpha pulled his son into his arms. Theo's semi-silent sobs were muffled as he cried into Jongho's shoulder.

Seonghwa pulled Avayla to him and they both worked to comfort their kids.

It was the first time they had truly seen the two of them cry about this.

No one spoke for several minutes at the two kids worked to calm themselves down.

"It's ok baby." Seonghwa cooed while kissing her forehead and cheeks. "I miss her too. I know it's going to take some time, but it's good that you're getting your emotions out. It's not good to keep them bottled up like you have."

Avayla sat back and Theo shifted to wrap his arms around her waist. "I... I don't just m-miss her, Mama..." the young alpha closed her eyes. "I... I n-need her..."

Jongho tilted his head, trying to figure out what she meant.

_Theo, what is she talking about?_ Jongho asked, rubbing the back of the beta's head.

_We messed up..._

"We didn't mess up, it was my fault..." Avayla said, tears coming back to her eyes. "I... I lost control."

_You did not, we have both been out of sorts. You can't take all the blame Avie._

"Stop trying to be so... so... so noble, Theo. I'm the alpha, I'm supposed to be able to control myself." Avayla's tone turned a little harsh, but she couldn't bring herself to look at her mate.

Seonghwa snorted in response and cupped her cheek. "Oh Ava. You've still got so much to learn about being an alpha. Alpha's do not have the ability to always be in control. Trust me, I know from experience."

Avayla gave Seonghwa a skeptical look. "Why do I have the feeling you're talking about Daddy?"

Jongho had to turn his head away and cover his mouth to try and hide his laugh. He was unsuccessful, but he figured it was worth the effort. "You might as well tell her, she's not a kid anymore Hwa."

The omega's cheeks turned a little red as his eyes widened.

"Mama?"

Seonghwa sighed and shook his head. "Oh boy. I really feel like you don't need to know this, but maybe you do. Your father and I, we didn't come together like you and Theo did. Not even close. You've heard us speak of the war before?" He got two nods, indicating that Avayla was relaying Seonghwa's words to Theo. "My family died, and I was trying to help a few other wolves who had lost their pack, when Mingi found me. Now, you want to talk about an alpha who can't stay in control, the first one you should think about is your father."

"Yeah, he does get angry easier than the others..." Avayla's mouth finally curled in a small smile.

"Well, your father... He decided that he had to have me. So he claimed me as his, without giving me a choice."

Avayla's mouth fell open as she realized what Seonghwa was saying.

The omega just nodded. "But, obviously, I ended up falling for your silly, dominant, alpha of a father. But we had a rocky start. Now, how do you feel that you messed up?"

The young alpha looked down again. "Well... I was angry and up-"

_WE. We are upset._ Theo said.

"Theo... Fine. We were upset... And we both needed to get our emotions out... And one thing led to another." Avayla hesitated and she looked at Theo. "Part of they reason we have been gone so much is because I've been trying to figure out what's wrong with me. But my wolf told me today. Mama... I'm pregnant."

A heavy silence fell over all of them as Seonghwa blinked several times.

Theo closed his eyes and kissed the side of Avayla's head as they waited for a response.

Then Seonghwa smiled and covered his mouth. "Oh my baby, there is nothing for you to be worried about! This is great news!"

Avayla sniffed and peeked at the omega. "It is?"

"Of course it is." Jongho grabbed the back of Theo's head again as his son beamed at him. _Things like this, to be blessed with a pup... If it's meant to happen then it will happen. You have all of us to help you through this. I know it's scary, but you will be amazing parents._

Both Avayla and Theo turned to give him a hug, before the alpha turned to hug her mother.

"I know... I know it's scary, not having Maria here. We are going to feel her loss tenfold. Especially Wooyoung." Seonghwa whispered.

Jongho looked down at the ground. He wondered if that had been what was keeping the young omega up all the time. Or if it was something else...

"Will we be able to find another midwife?" Avayla glanced at the house, a worried look on her face.

They had all seen the change in the omega. His bubbly personality was missed. Jongho vowed to pull the omega aside and talk to him about what was going on. He also needed to talk to San and get his take on things.

"Yes, we will start looking." Seonghwa nodded slowly. "The next time we go into town we can start asking around, ok?" He had a pained look on his face that slowly faded into acceptance. "Now come on, you two look exhausted. Let's get you to bed and we can talk more tomorrow."

The four of them stood and exchanged one more group hug before slowly making their way back into the house.

Jongho stepped in first and noticed that Wooyoung had fallen asleep on the couch, laying so his hands rested under his head. A small smile crossed Jongho's face as Wooyoung started to make small sounds in his sleep, a sign he was in a deep sleep at last.

_Good night Papa._ Theo said, turning to give Jongho a hug.

_Good night Theo. I love you._ Jongho pulled his son's head down to give him a kiss on the forehead and watched as he walked down the hallway to meet Avayla and Seonghwa.

Then Jongho turned around and grabbed a blanket off the back of the couch to spread it over the sleeping omega. He bent over and gave him a kiss on the forehead before walking to his room and climbing into bed next to Yunho.

His beta rolled over immediately and pressed his nose to Jongho's neck, sighing happily in his sleep now that he was back in his alpha's arms.

Jongho fell asleep thinking of the face Yunho would make once he found out that Theo was going to be a father now too.


	13. 12

Seonghwa wasn't able to fall back asleep after finding out the news.

He knew Avayla and Theo were terrified and felt guilty about the timing of it all, but being blessed with a pup was a big deal! And he was going to be a grandma. The thought felt strange to him, seeing as he still looked like he was in his early twenties, but that's what wolf blood did.

As long as they stayed healthy they could live for hundreds of years.

He couldn't wait for their family to grow yet again. Mingi had mentioned it too, saying he wouldn't mind having another pup. The thought drove Seonghwa's wolf crazy and he had been waiting for a good time to bring it up again.

But now that Avayla was expecting, now might not be the best time.

Although his wolf told him it could be.

Families were so convoluted in packs anyway due to the long lifespan, it wasn't uncommon for wolves to have several pups even after their other kids had pups...

_Mama?_ Avayla's voice entered his mind and Seonghwa sat up in bed.

_What is it baby?_

_I can't sleep..._

Seonghwa hurried out of the room and into Avayla's. Theo was sound asleep, which wasn't surprising. Yunho slept like a rock too sometimes.

But Avayla was sitting on the side of the bed.

Making sure to stay quiet, Seonghwa pulled her into his arms, then led her out onto the back porch.

Wooyoung was still sleeping soundly on the couch. Even in her upset state, Avayla couldn't help but smile at her Uncle Youngie curled up in as tight of a ball as he could be.

They settled in a large chair on the back porch and Seonghwa started playing with his daughter's hair. "I know you're scared. But you need to make sure you take the time to rest."

"I know, Mama... What's Papa going to do?"

Seonghwa let out a long breath. "I've been trying to figure that out too. We all know how hotheaded he can be, so I feel like we should expect the worse." He tilted Avayla's head up. "But no one is going to let him hurt Theo so don't you worry about that. Plus, I'm sure I can get him to calm down."

"How?" Avayla asked, her voice shaking a little.

"Well, I guess since we are still up I can ask you about this. How would you feel if your father and I had another pup? We have been talking about it since Rhodey was born." Seonghwa felt himself blushing a little as he placed a hand over his own stomach.

Avayla's forehead creased as she contemplated what he was saying. "So we could be pregnant at the same time?"

"Would that bother you? Be honest honey." Seonghwa tilted his head to the side so he could see her face.

The young alpha stared out at the trees for a long moment. "No. I don't think so. It would be kind of neat to go through that together." She said with a small smile. "I like being a big sister."

"And that's what tells me you'll like being a mom too." Seonghwa kissed the side of her head.

"Do you really think that will keep Papa calm?"

Seonghwa chuckled. "Trust me, if anyone can keep your stubborn father calm, it's me. He knows better than to piss me off."

"I keep forgetting you were raised by alphas." Avayla hums as she nuzzled into Seonghwa's chest. "I'm glad I have a strong mom like you."

The omega had to bite his lip to hold back any sounds that threatened to come loose as he stared down at his daughter.

The soft breathing coming from her told him she had finally fallen asleep, so he wasn't able to tell her how thankful he was to have her too. But he leaned forward and kissed the side of her head before staring at the trees to watch the sun rise.

His wolf churned inside him, feeling so many different emotions at once. The one that overpowered everything, though, was the thought of giving his alpha another pup.

The idea was exciting, but also terrifying. The thought of finding another midwife didn't sit right at all, but it was something they'd have to do. Somehow.

He would put out some feelers in town and see if anyone knew of another midwife in the area. Their pack was becoming very well known and very powerful, so word was sure to spread that they were looking for someone.

Although the chances of someone doing it for free like Maria was slim to none. And with Kenneth being gone as well, their income would be sorely lacking.

Seonghwa made a mental note to talk to Hongjoong about that.

But for now, he needed to find a way to deal with Mingi.

Especially when, later that morning, Yunho came bounding out of his room and practically tackled Theo to the floor.

Nothing was said out loud, but the joy could be felt radiating off the beta.

"What's going on?" Wooyoung asked as he sat up from the couch. He had bags under his eyes and he looked like he should still be sleeping.

Seonghwa watched as he folded up the blanket and set it on the back of the couch with shaking hands. Then he grabbed a bag sitting on the side of the couch and placed it in his pocket.

Before he could as the other omega about it, the twins came running out. "Mama! Mama!" They said at the same time.

The widest smile crossed Wooyoung's face as he crouched down for them to run into his arms. "Hello my angels. You're in a good mood this morning!"

"Daddy said we could go swimming at the lake!" They giggled and looked over to where San was walking down the hall. His shirt was lifted up as he scratched his chest and smacked his lips.

"I was coerced. The little devils wouldn't stop asking." He said, smirking when the twins stuck their tongues out at him.

Wooyoung gasped and hid them behind him. "How dare you talk about our daughters that way!" He placed a hand over his heart and stared down his alpha.

San just yawned and kept walking. Wooyoung and the twins stayed together and started laughing.

"Morning Hwa." The alpha said through a yawn.

"The lake sounds like a good idea, would you be willing to take the others?" Seonghwa asked, thinking that could be the perfect way to get the others out of the house.

San grunted as he started rummaging through the pantry.

Seonghwa took that as a yes and sent a wink in Avayla and Theo's direction. The alpha smiled at him and turned to press a kiss to Theo's mark. He shivered in response and tilted his head to the side.

It was nice seeing them more relaxed this morning.

Then the air was filled with mint as Mingi came shuffling out of his room, stretching his arms over his head.

Seonghwa groaned when he saw that his alpha was shirtless, already adding to the intimidating factor this morning.

"Good morning precious." He muttered into Seonghwa's neck as he pulled the omega into a hug. "Where were you last night?"

Seonghwa tried to think of something to say, but was thankfully interrupted when Hongjoong and Yeosang made their appearance.

Gunner and Riley showed up a few minutes later, already running around and full of energy.

The pack fell into their chaotic morning routine of fixing food for anyone who wanted it.

Seonghwa could feel Avayla's nerves growing and he sent his daughter a comforting smile before moving to stand next to Mingi.

"E-Everyone?" She said, her voice cracking a little.

Silence took over the kitchen.

Jongho's eyes widened and he immediately moved to stand next to his son. Hongjoong sent him a questioning look, but Jongho ignored it and took a deep breath.

"I have something to tell you." Avayla continued, looking down at the floor.

"What's the matter sweetheart?" Mingi asked, starting to move forward. Then he turned and scowled at Seonghwa when the omega grabbed his hand and pulled him back.

Theo wrapped his arms around Avayla's waist and pressed a kiss to her cheek. She smiled and let out a small, content sound, before taking a deep breath. "Theo and I are pregnant."

Several things happened at once.

Yunho was now able to cheer out loud and he jumped in the air.

Yeosang and Hongjoong gasped at the same time and the beta started clapping his hands.

San beamed and looked to his omega, who also had a smile on his face.

Jongho's eyes flashed to Mingi and he tensed.

Which was needed, because the older alpha had clenched his fists and his arms were visibly shaking as his eyes locked onto Theo.

"Mingi." Seonghwa said, adopting a warning tone. " **Mingi.** " The alpha was still seething, his eyes flashing red occasionally. " **ALPHA!** " Seonghwa snapped.

Mingi's eyes snapped down to the omega's, and the older visibly flinched, but fought through the submission to place his hands on either side of Mingi's face.

"Mingi take a deep breath. Instead of being the pigheaded alpha that you are, trying being happy for your daughter." Seonghwa snapped. "She is going to be a mother."

The alpha's eyes softened for a moment as he gazed down at his omega. He blinked several times, then turned to give Avayla an apologetic look. "Is it true?"

Avayla nodded. Her own eyes were flickering red, along with Jongho's, as they watched Mingi.

Now that he had calmed down, a wide smile crossed his face and he ran forward and hugged Avayla.

Seonghwa couldn't help but roll his eyes at at the temperamental alpha.

The family fell into celebration mode, Wooyoung being the loudest and happiest that he had someone else to be pregnant with.

At one point, Seonghwa noticed both San and Jongho watching the omega as he slipped over to the fridge. There was too much commotion going on to see what he was doing, but he returned holding a glass off milk so Seonghwa assumed that's what he had been doing.

San wrapped his arms around Wooyoung protectively and kissed his mark. The omega shivered and hummed as the two of them started to sway together.

After a little time, everyone started packing up to head to the lake. Mingi followed around, suddenly obsessing over every little thing that Avayla was doing and inserting himself between her and her mate.

Seonghwa had had just about enough. Usually the mom was the annoying one.

As the group gathered to leave, Seonghwa grabbed Mingi by the wrist and pulled him to their room.

"What are you doing?" The alpha asked. "I thought we were going to the lake. Ava-"

"You need to stop." Seonghwa snapped, crossing his arms.

Mingi's eyebrows shot up. "Stop what?"

The omega sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "You can be really thick sometimes, you know that?"

The alpha's eyes narrowed and a low growl came from his throat.

"Avayla doesn't want you hovering around her all the time! She has Theo now, you aren't the only man in her life. I know it's hard for you to accept that, but it's true." Seonghwa crossed his arms, not flinching under his alpha's harsh gaze.

"I just want to protect her."

"I know you do. But she can protect herself. If you aren't careful you could drive her and Theo away. They are adults now, they can chose to leave the pack if they want to and start their own pack. Is that what you want?" Seonghwa could feel his own anger rising at the thought of his daughter leaving.

"No! Of course not!" Mingi yelled, throwing his hands up.

"Well you're sure headed in that direction! You let your anger get the better of you and it ruins everything!" Seonghwa shouted. He could feel his wolf churning inside him and he had to push it away. He didn't feel like calming down right now.

"What the hell does that mean?!"

"That I wanted to talk to you about having another pup! But if you're going to be a pigheaded fool and drive my daughter away then I want nothing to do with you!" Seonghwa bellowed, balling his hands into fists and stomping one foot on the ground.

Mingi growled and advanced toward the omega, his eyes turning bright red. " **Nothing to do with me? You want nothing to do with your alpha and yet you want to give me pups?** "

The pair backed into the room and Mingi shoved Seonghwa down onto the bed.

This is exactly what Seonghwa had been going for. He knew he could set Mingi off to get him distracted. It's what his wolf wanted too.

" **Yes, I want to give Alpha pups.** " Seonghwa begged. He wanted to feel his alpha more than anything. They hadn't been intimate since he had fallen ill. " **Please Alpha. Fill me, let me give you pups.** "

The alpha bent over and claimed Seonghwa's mouth roughly, plunging his tongue in right away and pinning his hands to the bed in the process.

Seonghwa could feel Mingi shuddering against him as he fought to reign in his wolf, but his own wolf didn't want that. So he rocked his hips, grinding their hardening lengths together through their sweatpants.

Mingi let out a groan into their kiss. " **Someone is needy.** "

The omega whimpered and nodded several times. " **I need my alpha. I miss my alpha.** " He panted, trying to extend his neck to kiss Mingi again.

But the younger lifted his head up higher and smirked as Seonghwa fought against his hold on him. " **You said you wanted nothing to do with me.** " He growled.

Seonghwa whimpered and tried to free himself again. "I'm sorry Mingi. You know I didn't really mean it."

The alpha leaned forward and sneered. " **I guess I'll just have to show you how much you really DO want to be with me.** " He chuckled and slipped off the bed, ducking down to grab something.

Seonghwa sat and tried to see what he was doing. He craned his neck, but Mingi made sure to keep whatever he had grabbed behind his back. "M-Mingi?" He said, shivering a little as the red eyes found him again.

It was obvious that Mingi had let his wolf take control. Seonghwa almost wondered if he had pushed the alpha too far, but then Mingi reached out and cupped his cheek gently.

Just that soft touch was enough to know that no matter what happened next, he was forgiven for talking back to his alpha.

But that didn't stop the alpha from wanting to stake his claim on what was his.

In the blink of an eye, Seonghwa was pushed up to the top of the bed. Mingi growled as he pulled the omega's shirt off and threw it aside. Then his arms were pinned above his head and tied together, then to the headboard, by one of Mingi's belts.

Seonghwa's heart raced as he eyed the alpha.

" **Now you have no choice but to stay with me.** " Mingi purred as he started kissing down Seonghwa's arms.

Each brush of his lips set Seonghwa of fire as he arched off the bed. " **Alpha.** " He whimpered. Then the sound got louder when Mingi nibbled at the mark on his neck.

" **You're mine, precious. Don't you ever forget that.** " Mingi continued to place kisses down Seonghwa's bare chest.

"N-Never... I'm sorry M-Mingi." Seonghwa whined as the alpha started to tease his nipples. Something told him that Mingi wasn't going to be easy on him.

And it made his member twitch with excitement.

Mingi traveled further down the omega's body and pulled down his sweatpants and boxers in one smooth motion.

Seonghwa whimpered again as the cold air kissed his skin and he tested the belt around his wrists, wanting to feel his alpha.

But the alpha 'tsked' at him and shook his head. " **Now, now. Who said you could to anywhere? I told you that you're mine.** " Mingi wrapped his hand around Seonghwa's length and started to stroke him quickly, jumping right in and already over stimulating the omega.

The older cried out and started to thrust his hips subconsciously. He could feel the slick he naturally produced already pooling beneath him as his body craved more.

It was evident that Mingi was in a rush too, because he ducked down and started lapping at Seonghwa's entrance. A possessive growl came from deep within his throat as he spread the older's legs apart to gain better access.

Seonghwa shuddered as he felt Mingi press his tongue in him, twisting it back and forth, before adding a finger.

The omega could feel him his hips rocking as he tried to match the thrusts of Mingi's finger. " **Please Alpha. N-Need you...** "

" **Someone's impatient. Alpha likes.** " Mingi growled before nipping at the insides of Seonghwa's thighs as he inserted another finger.

The older yelped as he felt the teeth scrapping his skin and knew Mingi was leaving marks and indents. It hurt too much to be anything else, and yet he loved it. He loved being claimed by his hotheaded alpha.

Suddenly his body was being bent in half as his legs were lifted off the bed.

Mingi removed his fingers and gathered up a good amount of slick before rubbing it over his length. He pumped himself several times while returning his tongue to the omega's entrance, humming happily at the moans escaping from Seonghwa.

When he was ready, Mingi lined up his length and smirked at Seonghwa, the only warning given before he slammed in all the way.

Seonghwa cried out and bit his lip as the pain flowed through him. There was the anger from talking back. He knew it would be in there somewhere. And he knew to some extent he deserved it.

But the pain was quickly erased by pure ecstasy as Mingi began to thrust into him.

" **So good, precious. So good for Alpha.** "

Seonghwa nodded as he pulled at the belt again. He was used to Mingi pinning down his hands, but this was frustrating. All he wanted to do was touch his lover.

Mingi saw him struggling and chuckled quickly before picking up the pace.

" **A-A-A...** " Seonghwa couldn't even form coherent words as the bed creaked below him while his alpha forced him deeper into the mattress. " **N-Ne... Pu... Ah!** "

Mingi spun Seonghwa around without even pulling out, causing him to groan and Seonghwa to whimper. He was now face down in a pillow and he had to wiggle to turn it to the side, but his bound arms made it difficult.

Especially when Mingi resumed his brutal pace. But it felt so good. He wanted more. Always, he wanted more.

Seonghwa felt his gut tightening as his climax drew closer, and he could feel Mingi slow down due to his knot growing.

" **Time for pups. Be a good boy and give Alpha his pups.** " Mingi growled, thrusting into Seonghwa a couple of more times before his knot burst.

Seonghwa climaxed at the same time and sprayed the sheets below him as his entire body felt like it was numb and on fire at the same time.

Mingi wrapped one arm around Seonghwa's waist while reaching up to release his wrists with the other. He caught the omega before he collapsed on the bed and tilted them to lay on their sides.

The older whimpered a little at the shift, but Mingi immediately silenced it by peppering his neck and shoulders with kisses. "I'm sorry." He whispered.

Seonghwa turned his head to look at his alpha.

"I don't mean to be so hotheaded..." Mingi closed his eyes and pressed his face to Seonghwa's shoulder. "I just can't always help it."

"I know." Seonghwa whispered. "Which is why I wanted to set you off and get your wolf's mind off it. So I gave you something else to hopefully obsess over."

Mingi lifted his head up and kissed the omega, keeping it slow. "I really don't deserve you." He whispered against Seonghwa's lips.

"No you don't." The older said, nudging Mingi with his shoulder. "But you have me anyway. Now I think you owe her and Theo an apology. And you better believe you're going to do it too."

"I know." Mingi grumbled and pulled Seonghwa closer to him.

The omega chuckled and patted Mingi's hands a couple of times as he enjoyed being in his alpha's embrace once again.


	14. 13

"Lizbeth slow down!" Lorelai called out with a slight whine.

San watched carefully as she tried to run ahead, but then stopped to look back at Wooyoung and moved to his side again, taking his hand.

"Sissy stop!"

Lizbeth spun in a circle then ran back to take Wooyoung's other hand.

He could feel the omega's pleasure through their link and San smiled at the back of his head.

Gunner and Riley ran ahead to the lake and were waiting patiently at the side of it for everyone to catch up. They were both in swim trucks and topless, ready to enjoy the nice sunny day.

The rest of the pack made their way to the side of the lake and started setting up blankets. Seonghwa had packed them plenty of food to snack on and they had some pillows for Wooyoung to lean against.

It was peaceful here.

San hurried to Wooyoung's side to help him to the ground and get him nestled in. "What can I get you baby?" He asked, nuzzling his nose against the side of the omega's head. His wolf churned when he got a happy purr in return.

"Just some water for right now. Oh and some chips." Wooyoung beamed at him and settled into the pillows while keeping a hand on his stomach.

They should know any day now what the gender was and San was so excited. He couldn't wait to have another child to spoil.

He hoped the baby looked like Wooyoung again. That would be so perfect if he did. Then he'd have four Wooyoung's to love.

The alpha smiled to himself as he fished out a bottle of water from the cooler and grabbed a bag of chips for his omega.

Yeosang smiled at him from where he was feeding Rhodey.

Hongjoong, Yunho, and Jongho were already in the water with the kids.

The twins squealed with delight when Theo dove after them and picked them up to spin them in a circle.

When they finally wiggled free, he hurried to Avayla's side and picked her up out of the water. She wrapped her arms around his neck and smiled down at him. She was glowing now that everyone had accepted that she was going to have a baby too.

San returned to Wooyoung's side and handed him the water. Then he crouched down and rubbed his swollen stomach and leaned forward to place a soft kiss on it. "Are you going to go swimming today?" He asked, looking back at his mate.

"Maybe, I'm pretty tired, so I might just sit and watch. But go, enjoy yourself." Wooyoung said, running his hand through his alpha's hair.

"Are you sure?"

Wooyoung hummed and nodded.

"Alright, I'll be back in a bit." San kissed his forehead while letting his fingers drift over the omega's mark. He smirked when he felt Wooyoung shiver. "Maybe we can have a little time to ourselves later tonight." He whispered, then nibbled on Wooyoung's ear.

The younger turned red and pressed his lips together in a thin line, but nodded.

San let out a low rumbled in response and kissed him one more time.

Then he turned, pulled off his shirt, and ran as fast as he could into sparkling lake.

"Daddy!!" The twins called out when they saw him coming. They giggled and jumped out of the way as he dove under the surface of the water, then immediately latched onto his back.

"Oh no! I'm being attacked!" He said, pretending to have a hard time staying above the surface. "I don't think I can make it." He groaned, getting a little deeper and holding out an arm.

"No! San!" Yunho shouted, pushing through the water. With a wide smile, he grabbed Lizbeth and threw her over his shoulder.

"Uncle Yunie no!!" She laughed and flailed her legs, trying to get away.

Having been freed of one twin, San twisted around to pull Lorelai into his arms and started tickling her stomach.

She fell into a giggle fit and wormed her way free before swimming to join her sister and the boys. All four of them decided to gang up on Hongjoong and he struggled to keep his head above water.

Jongho swam to help him, leaving Yunho and San on their own.

"Hey can I ask you something?" Yunho said quietly, glancing at the beach where Yeosang was watching Hongjoong and Wooyoung was dozing.

"Always." San turned to the older and smiled.

"What's going on with Youngie?"

San sighed and ran a hand through his wet hair. "I've been trying to figure it out. I can feel that something is wrong, but he acts perfectly fine. And the few times I try to ask him, he just says he's tired. I don't think he's sleeping at night."

"Still?" Yunho sided and moved so he could sit in the shallow water off to the side.

San followed him, eyeing the trees for a moment. He heard a rustling sound, but then the breeze ruffled his hair and he shook his head before sitting next to the beta.

"You don't think he's still taking that herb, do you?" Yunho asked softly, turning to watch the omega as he slept.

The alpha's head snapped to Wooyoung. How had he not thought of that? He had been hesitant about Wooyoung taking it in the first place, but it had been needed for the antidote.

Why would he still be taking it now?

They both watched as Wooyoung's head started rocking back and forth. He looked troubled.

San and Yunho both rose out of the water and ran to him.

"Wooyoung?" San crouched down next to him and placed a hand on his shoulder.

The younger whimpered and his head started moving faster.

"Youngie, Youngie wake up." Yunho cupped his face and leaned forward.

"Is everything ok?" Yeosang asked from off to the side.

After another shake, Wooyoung's eyes flew open and he sat up, gasping heavily.

San could feel the fear pouring out of him and moved himself so he could pull Wooyoung into his arms. "It's ok, I'm here. It was just a dream." San whispered into his ear.

Wooyoung closed his eyes and took several deep breaths as he tried to calm himself down. "I kn-know. I'm ok." He said, his voice shaking a little. But he patted San's shoulder a couple of times. "I didn't even realized I had dozed off." The omega blinked several times and smiled up at Yunho and San. "I'm ok now, thank you."

"Have you been having nightmares a lot baby? Is that why you've been leaving bed?" San asked, running his hand through his mate's hair.

"I told you I'm fine Sannie." Wooyoung said, leaning over for his water bottle.

Yunho grabbed it first and held it out of his reach. "It's one thing to lie to your alpha." He said, his voice getting harsh. "It's another thing to lie to me. San can be blinded by his devotion to you, but I know how to see right through it."

Wooyoung flinched and looked away.

"Have you been taking that herb you found to keep you awake still?" Yunho asked, keeping the same tone the same.

The omega pushed out his lips in a pout, refusing to look at either of them.

San knew he could force an answer out of him, Yunho probably could too since he was such a dominant beta, but he swore to never do that.

"I've been having nightmares." Wooyoung said, still not looking at either of them.

San saw Yeosang get up and leave out of the corner of his eye, but he was to focused on Wooyoung to see where he went. "About what?" He asked gently.

"Stuff." Wooyoung rubbed circles into his stomach as his lower lip started to tremble.

Yunho and San exchanged worried glances but waited for Wooyoung to continue.

The omega closed his eyes, forcing a tear to roll down his cheek. "I don't know why they started... But I'm back at A-Alpha pack..." He finally looked at San with watery eyes. "W-With your b-brothers..."

San's heart shattered at the thought of Wooyoung having to live through that nightmare again.

Both he and Yunho pulled Wooyoung into a hug, minding his stomach, and held him tight.,

"I'm t-to af-fraid to go back to sleep. S-So I've been taking the herb to stay awake unt-til I'm just t-too tired to fight it. I'm s-sorry. I didn't w-want to worry you guys because it's j-just bad dreams." Wooyoung sniffed, pressing his head into Yunho's chest.

"You should know you can always come to us with this. They are gone. San and I made sure of that." Yunho said gently.

San nodded and placed kisses along the back of Wooyoung's neck, trying to calm him down. He could still hear the kids playing in the background, but it was only a matter of time before they noticed what was going on.

He could already feel Jongho's eyes on them.

Images of Caius' broken body flashed before his eyes. And he had seen Yunho take care of Jasper. They were dead. Even his mother, before she burned herself alive, had said her sons were dead.

He didn't know what had caused these dreams, but he knew he needed to work on helping Wooyoung get past them.

"Let's try finding something that will make you sleep, ok? And I'll be by your side all night." San said, caressing Wooyoung's cheek and wiping his tears.

"I can be there too, and Jongho if you'd like." Yunho smiled at the younger and kissed the top of his head.

Wooyoung just sighed and nodded. "We'll see how I'm doing. They don't come every night."

"Whatever you think is best." San looked at Yunho and got a nod of agreement.

The rest of their time at the lake was a little more relaxing, although San never left Wooyoung's side after that.

They pulled out their food after a bit and enjoyed drying off under the sun.

But all the activity wore the kids out and they started dozing off, so they decided to head back home.

San held Lizbeth in his arms while Yunho carried Lorelai, smiling wide as she wrapped her arms around her neck. "I can't wait to have more little ones to spoil."

"I can't believe Avayla and Theo are going to be parents." San said glancing over at the couple. The were walking off to the side, fingers interlaced.

"Me neither." Yunho's smile grew as he looked at the couple too.

"Are you even going to let them hold their own baby?" Wooyoung teased, laughing when Yunho's ears turned red.

"Of course I am!" He shifted Lorelai and held her tighter. "I have other babies that need my attention to." He pushed his lips out in a pout.

When they returned to the house, they left the cooler outside so they could get the kids inside and put them in their rooms for a nap.

.

.

.

.

Wooyoung kissed both of his girls on the forehead before watching then disappear down the hallway.

Everyone else was milling around the house doing their own thing. Seonghwa and Mingi were in the kitchen talking with Avayla and Theo.

He was happy to see that the stubborn alpha had calmed down, although he knew exactly what Seonghwa had to do to get him that way.

Wooyoung sighed and looked around for the snacks they had brought, wanting more of his chips. His pregnancy mind had turned him into quite the snacker.

He found them outside, sitting next to the open cooler.

A cool breeze blew across his face and Wooyoung closed his eyes. He did feel better now that San knew about the dreams. They didn't happen often, like he had told them, but with everything going on he figured he could take care of it himself by not sleeping through the night.

His stomach rumbled and he opened his eyes to look down at it. "Alright little one, I'm working on it."

He bent over and picked up the open bag of chips, not thinking twice about it before dipping his hand in to grab a couple chips.

As he munched on them, he pulled out the water bottle he had been drinking from at the lake and took a drink.

Wooyoung smacked his lips and looked at the bottle. He thought it tasted a little odd, but he attributed that to the chips he was eating.

The omega turned to go inside when the alluring scent of rosemary filled his nose. His wolf churned at the overwhelming smell.

San had mentioned wanting some alone time.

His vision blurred for a second as he inhaled and he felt himself getting slightly aroused.

"Sannie? Where are you?" He asked, walking down the deck.

They had done this occasionally. One of them would set up a fun spot and the other would follow the scent to find the location.

Wooyoung thought it was sweet that San wanted to do this right now.

He started walking into the trees, feeling intoxicated by San's scent. It had been awhile since they'd done anything.

The omega picked up the pace as his wolf urged him forward. All it could think about was being with its alpha.

The trees started to get a little thicker, perfect cover for them, and San's scent was getting stronger.

Wooyoung swayed, suddenly feeling light headed. "Sannie?" He called out, leaning against a tree.

He hardly had any kind of sickness during his pregnancy, but this felt like it could be one of those times. Perfect timing...

Then his head started to pound.

"San... I don't..." He swayed in place.

He didn't feel right.

His vision started to blur.

Wooyoung saw something move in front of him and he was blasted with rosemary again. "San. I don't... San..."

He reached out for his alpha and felt his arms wrap around him, lifting him easily off the ground.

Wooyoung let his eyes fall shut and he smiled as he felt his alpha's arms wrap around him and start to carry him home.


	15. 14

Hongjoong smiled as he looked down at Rhodey sleeping peacefully in his arms. His youngest son cooed and started to suck on his fist.

The sight made Hongjoong's heart flutter.

He'd forgotten how much he loved having babies in the house, and now there were two more on the way!

The thought made his wolf very proud that he had formed and was leading such a strong, healthy, and happy pack.

"Dad can I hold him?" Riley asked, walking over shyly.

"Always, come sit next to me. He's still very young so we need to be careful." Hongjoong smiled at his eldest and watched as he climbed onto the couch and nestled in next to him. The alpha shifted Rhodey over so that he was partially laying in Riley's lap.

"He's so small." Riley whispered, bringing a hand up to run it over his brother's arm.

Hongjoong chuckled. "You were this small once, too."

Riley smiled down at his brother. "And one day he will be big like me? Will he be an alpha too?"

"It's hard to say. We might be able to tell depending on how he acts, but we won't know for sure until his wolf makes an appearance."

"Did you guess what I was?" Riley looked up at his father with wide eyes.

"Yes. Well, I had a feeling, there were a couple of times we thought you might be a beta because you were a little more timid than Gunner. Ava was very obvious she was going to be an alpha, same with Gunner. Theo was obvious too. And the twins were harder to tell, just because they were so energetic like San can be." Hongjoong said, thinking back to when all the kids were young.

"What would you have done if I wasn't an alpha?"

Hongjoong looked at Riley and moved to kiss the top of his head. "Loved you all the same. Ranks don't matter like that in this family." He whispered.

Riley smiled and nestled into Hongjoong's shoulder and closed his eyes. "I love you too, Dad."

The alpha hummed and stared down at his two sons. They were perfect.

Yeosang came walking over a few minutes later and stopped a short distance away. The smile on his face said it all. He was so happy seeing the three most important people in his life snuggled on the couch together.

Hongjoong didn't need to mind link with him to know this.

He met his beta's eyes and both of their wolves churned with happiness.

Off to the side, Yunho and San came walking down the hall looking satisfied with themselves.

"Did you get the girls to bed?" Yeosang asked, a small smirk on his face. It was no secret that the twins didn't like going to sleep when they knew everyone else was still awake, even though Gunner and Riley would be heading to bed here soon too.

"Finally." San sighed, but he had a bright smile on his face. "Yunho had to sing them a lullaby like five times."

The beta rolled his eyes and huffed as he went to stand by Jongho, who had an amused smile on his face.

"What happened to spoiling the kids?" San teased.

Yunho's ears turned pink as he turned away and crossed his arms.

"Well speaking of bed." Yeosang said, looking down at Riley.

The young alpha let out a long, dramatic sigh as Hongjoong pulled Rhodey back into his arms. Then he leaned over to kiss Rhodey's forehead, and then Hongjoong's cheek.

"Good night, Son."

Riley smiled and walked with Yeosang down the hall to his room.

Mingi and Seonghwa were gone, so they must be with Gunner. And Ava and Theo were in their room, having said good night a few hours ago.

Hongjoong glanced down at Rhodey again and watched as his eyes traveled back and forth while he dreamed.

As he was watching his son, the scent of rosemary started to get stronger.

The alpha looked up to see San hurrying back down the hall from his room. "Do you guys know where Wooyoung is?"

"He stepped outside a little while ago, I think he was waiting for you." Hongjoong glanced at the door, then back at San. "What's wrong?"

San bolted for the door and ran outside.

Jongho and Yunho followed him.

Hongjoong got up and held Rhodey close to him. He tried reaching out to the omega through the mind link, and that's when he realized why they were panicked.

He couldn't feel Wooyoung anymore.

The alpha hurried outside and saw San running around in the yard. He looked stressed. "I don't understand!" He shouted.

"San, what is it?" Hongjoong asked.

Yunho glanced over his shoulder. He looked terrified. "It's like his scent disappeared."

Hongjoong's forehead creased as he stepped into the yard and scented the area.

He could smell Wooyoung's lavender scent, and then he could smell it being overpowered by San's rosemary scent.

There was nothing else out of the ordinary. He could pick up the rest of the pack's scents, but San's was the strongest right now.

The younger alpha was visibly distressed as he looked around, trying to figure out what happened to his mate.

A few minutes later, Mingi came out and ran up to San. "Hey, calm down. We are going to figure this out, ok? I brought the books. Wooyoung was teaching you right?"

"Yes." San cringed and started flipping through the pages.

The taller took his turn to scan the area, but he too looked puzzled. There were a few times that he paused and backtracked, like he was picking up on something but couldn't quite place it.

San's hands started to shake as he looked at the book. Jongho hurried over and took the book from him and pulled him into a hug. "Come on, let's to for a run and look for him. Maybe it just got lost amongst yours." He said, then looked to Hongjoong for confirmation.

The head alpha nodded. He trusted Jongho's judgement more than anyone else's, so he hardly ever found a reason to say no to his second in command. "Be safe."

The younger nodded and he and San ran into the forest.

Mingi and Yunho stayed behind, but kept roaming the backyard.

Hongjoong looked down at Rhodey and kissed his forehead. Sometimes it felt like they could never catch a break, even though it had been about ten years since their last major incident...

His eyes narrowed as he scanned the trees.

Whoever this was had messed with the wrong pack.

.

.

.

.

Wooyoung let out a soft moan as he stretched, then pulled the covers over his head to block out the harsh sunlight.

He wasn't ready to get up yet.

The bed shifted next to him and Wooyoung turned his head and smiled when he saw his mate watching him.

"Good morning." The deep voice rumbled.

Wooyoung hesitated. Something was wrong with the voice. It was too deep... It was...

The alpha reached out and caressed Wooyoung's cheek, instantly cutting off his train of thought. He let out a low purr and leaned into the touch. It sent a chill down his spine and a low rumble came from his chest.

"Good morning." Wooyoung rolled into his side to press his nose into his alpha's neck. He would never get tired of his rosemary scent. It blended so perfectly with his own.

"You've got a busy day ahead of you. Are you sure you'll be able to handle it?"

Busy day? Why would he have a busy day? No one wanted him doing much since he was pregnant...

Again the alpha touched his cheek and brought Wooyoung's attention back to him. "Hm? Yeah, oh yeah, of course I'll be fine." Wooyoung smiled. He did have a busy day, he remembered now.

They both moved to get out of bed and Wooyoung found himself admiring the curves of his mates muscular arms and broad chest. He especially loved the way his alpha seemed to shine.

His vision blurred for a moment and he blinked. Then he looked around, confused for a moment. "Where..."

"Love, take your medicine." The man said quickly, holding out a cup with green liquid in it.

The voice didn't sound right, and yet... Rosemary...

"You need to drink this, doctors orders." The alpha growled.

Wooyoung didn't fully know why, but he drank the green liquid and swayed as a warm feeling flowed through him.

The large arms wrapped around him and one had lifted up to cup the back of his neck. He held Wooyoung in place as his eyelids fluttered and pressed his face into the alpha's chest. His alpha sure was tall...

After a moment, when his body started to feel normal again, he looked up. His vision was still a little blurred again as he tried to focus on the man's face. "Who..."

"Wooyoung, baby, it's me. San." The deep voice said.

The omega blinked again, then smiled. "Sannie." Rosemary. San smelled like rosemary. "What happened?"

"Remember what the doctors said? The baby is taking it's toll on you because of your body having to heal itself in order for us to have a pup. It's messing with your mind. That's why you need to take the medicine."

Wooyoung stared at San's chest, nodding with his words. "Yes. Right, I'm sorry."

His alpha gripped his chin and tilted his head back to look up at him. "It's ok. We will get through this together. I will help you through this, my Prince." He bent over and connected their lips in a possessive and hungry kiss that left Wooyoung weak at the knees. "I can't wait for tonight." The alpha purred, moving to kiss along Wooyoung's jaw. "I can't wait to make you **mine.** "

The omega shivered, then stepped back. "I guess I'd better get started then."

Moments later, as if sensing his intentions, two beta females came into the room as San left. Wooyoung smiled and nodded his head in greeting.

They gave him a shy smile and guided him to sit in front of the mirror. One ducked into his closet and brought out black pants, a black jacket, and a gold and black leopard print shirt. After he got dressed, they started applying makeup to his skin and styled his hair so it was slicked back on the sides.

Wooyoung admired himself in the mirror. "Beautiful job, girls. Thank you."

They smiled again and bowed before leaving the room.

Taking a deep breath, the omega hoisted himself out of the chair and placed a hand on his small baby bump, rubbing it gently.

Then he turned and left the room to walk down a long hall. Portraits of both men and women lined the hall. Wooyoung glanced at them as he walked, keeping his head held high.

Eventually, the hall opened up into a large gathering room that had a red carpet running down the middle of the marbled floor. Pillars lined either side of the room that had ornate carvings in them and a large dome with intricate paintings and windows made the entire room light up.

At the end of the room Wooyoung had entered sat two gold and red thrones. They faced giant, carved oak doors that had alpha guards standing on either side.

San was already waiting for him by one of the thrones, joined by two other omegas. They were chatting peacefully. San kept his hands clasped behind his back.

Wooyoung's eyes traveled over his body. He looked rather handsome in the suit he was wearing today.

His alpha's eyes flashed to him and a hungry look entered his eyes.

The two omega's turned around as well and immediately bowed low. "Forgive us, Sir. We didn't know you were here.

"That's ok, I snuck in." Wooyoung held up his hand to wave them off before moving to stand in front of his throne.

He blinked a couple of times, trying to remember the omegas' names.

San leaned over and whispered, "Jacobi and Lionel." Rosemary once again washed over him and Wooyoung felt himself relax as San gave him a peck on the cheek. "You've got this."

The omega turned back to the other two and tilted his head back. "What's on the agenda today?"

"Well we need to do a tour of the city, mainly the outer walls, just to make sure that everything is up to your standards. That doesn't have to all be done today, though. We also have a few of the citizens who have requested to meet with you." Lionel, an older omega with a kind look on his face, read from his clipboard.

Wooyoung nodded and sat down. San followed suit and reached over to take his hand. The alpha's hand dwarfed his, but that was one of the things he loved about his mate.

He glanced over. His mate... Yes... San was his mate. Right? He was...

"Deep breath, love. You've got this. You're a natural." San leaned over, a little blurred for a moment, but Wooyoung shook his head and then nodded.

"Let them in Jacobi." He ordered, waving at the younger of the two omegas.

There was a small group of wolves lined up already. They all turned to look at Wooyoung and their faces lit up.

It filled him with pride as he looked over his people.

Yes. His people.

Because he was the leader of Ultima.


	16. 15

Jongho and San ran for hours trying to pick up on any sign of Wooyoung's scent leaving the property. But just like the magic they were so used to dealing with right now, his scent disappearing was a mystery. Which mean it had to be some kind of magic that covered it up.

The worst part was there was no sign of any other wolf on the property.

San was slowly becoming more and more stressed. He constantly whimpered as they looked around and his tail fell down between his legs frequently.

Jongho, on the other hand, was pissed.

He couldn't believe this had happened to them again.

A million questions flew through his head as they took another lap around their territory.

Why Wooyoung?

How did they take him so easily?

Why didn't he try calling out to any of them?

When there was still no sign of what had happened, Jongho roared and swiped at a tree, taking a large chunk out of it with his paw. The sound of wood splintering was so satisfied that he ended up attacking the tree until it fell over with one long groan and a loud crash to the forest floor.

After breathing heavily for a couple of minutes, he turned to where San was laying on the ground covering his nose and his eyes with his paws.

_I'm sorry, I didn't meant to lose my temper._ Jongho said, moving closer to the other alpha. He extended his neck and started slowly licking San's neck and behind his ears.

_I'm a terrible alpha..._ San whimpered. His entire body started shaking.

_San..._

_Why can't I ever protect him?_ Even through the mind link his voice was quivering. _What am I doing wrong? I'm an alpha for crying out loud! And I can't even keep my own mate safe._ San lifted his head up and let out a long howl that broke Jongho's heart more than it already was.

_Guys... Come back..._ Mingi said gently.

San and Jongho both looked in the direction of the pack house. Then the younger nudged San's side and helped him stand on his shaky legs.

They fell into an easy lope as they picked their way through the trees.

Hongjoong and Mingi were waiting for them outside already, and Yunho slipped out the back door a moment later.

The two incoming alphas shifted and slipped a pair of pants on before walking to meet the rest of their pack.

San looked so defeated as he kept his eyes glued to the ground. His shoulders were dipped and his arms hung limply at his sides.

Jongho reached over and took one of his hands, giving it a little squeeze. As much as he was worried about Wooyoung too, he knew he had to try and be strong for San's sake. He had given himself that one moment to be angry, now it was time to push past that.

Yunho came over and pulled San into his arms too. The alpha hugged Yunho and kept his face pressed to his chest while Mingi cleared his throat.

"Did you find anything?" Jongho asked him.

"No. Yunho and I found nothing. But I've been thinking about everything and I may have a theory." Mingi ran a hand through his brown hair and let out a long, deep, sigh. "San?"

The alpha in question turned his head to look at Mingi.

"Did you see Caius die?"

The question was so blunt and unexpected, Jongho felt his mouth drop open. But from the look on Mingi's face, it was apparent that he wanted an answer.

San looked just as baffled. "What are you getting at?"

"That's what I would like to know." Hongjoong said, crossing his arms.

"Of course he's dead. I broke all four legs in wolf form and then forced him to shift!" San said, getting defensive. "There were bones poking out of his body!"

"You didn't answer my question." Mingi said, keeping his voice calm for once.

"I just told you, he's dead!" San backed away from Yunho as his eyes flashed red.

"Did you _see_ him die?"

Everyone was silent as they turned to look at San. He had a confused look on his face and seemed like he was about to yell at Mingi again, but stopped.

His eyes flew back and forth, as if he was trying to envision something in front of him. "No..." He whispered.

Mingi closed his eyes and turned his head away.

"I... I didn't." San covered his mouth and looked at Jongho.

The young alpha's heart was racing.

"You think..?" Yunho asked, not even being able to get the words out.

Mingi nodded. "It's the only thing that makes sense to me. There was no distress coming from Wooyoung's scent. He never called out for help, he never screamed. He just followed what was comfortable. We all know magic can play tricks, so maybe some was used on him to numb some of his other senses, or weaken him in one way. But not enough that he was distressed."

San fell to his knees.

"And the other think we found is your rosemary scent. But you're not the only wolf I've come across with that scent. I remember being in the hallway with him when trying to rescue Seonghwa and Wooyoung calling out, thinking it was you since your wolves look exactly the same." Mingi paused and glanced at the others. "Caius has a rosemary scent too, so he could have used that against Wooyoung to lure him out. Treat it like San was hiding and Wooyoung had to find him."

"And there's only one pack I know of that has access to magic anymore..." Hongjoong added on.

The five of them were silent for a long time as they contemplated the theory.

"I think we should call for help now." Jongho said quietly, looking at Mingi. "If we think Ultima really did come back for him, after all these years, then we are going to need help."

The taller nodded. "I'll call him in the morning."

"So what do we do now?" Yunho asked, glancing around their little circle.

Hongjoong pursed his lips. "I don't think here's much we can do. While we know where Ultima is, and I'd be willing to be that's where he's been taken if they do have him, we don't even know of Ultima is really behind this or not... But if it is them, we can't take them on alone."

"But-" Jongho started, but his head alpha held up a hand.

"I know. However, if it really is Ultima, they wouldn't hurt him. They must be desperate for a leader if they figured out where he was. There must have been something that gave us away."

"His heat..." San said, so softly that Jongho almost didn't hear him. But he could feel the blood leave his face as he registered what San was saying. "It was so strong... If they were on patrol they could have found his scent... Then all they had to do was keep scanning the area."

"We did see those two strange wolves when we went to visit the Grey's." Jongho said, glancing at Hongjoong. "Do you think?"

"It could be possible. Everything seems to be lining up that way. All they would have had to do was keep searching the forest grid by grid, or even talk to some of the other wolves around here." Hongjoong groaned and looked up at the sky.

"Why would Caius join Ultima though?" Yunho crouched down to place a hand on San's shoulder.

"Maybe they were the ones who found him? And they are the ones who healed him?" Mingi speculated. 

"But then... Wouldn't he want to kill Wooyoung after what happened? Why would he help them?"

"To get to me..." San whispered. "Payback..." He reached up and touched his mating mark.

Jongho's forehead creased with concern. The mating mark was still there, which with all the theories being tossed around honestly surprised him. If Ultima wanted Wooyoung as their leader, then wouldn't they want to burn a way his mark? Or even Caius for that matter? If he really wanted to get back at San, then that would be the way to do it.

"I..." San whimpered and Yunho pulled him closer. "I c-can't f-feel him... But... I c-can sense that h-he's ok..."

The three other alphas exchanged worried, but hopeful looks.

Jongho knew they were right. If this was Ultima, there's no way they'd harm Wooyoung. Not if they wanted him to lead.

Then his heart sank and he fell to his knees.

They already had an heir on the way too...

If they didn't get Wooyoung out of there, his baby would be born at Ultima and be raised to take over. It was somehow a blessing that they were able to get Wooyoung on his own, because Jongho didn't want to imagine what would have happened if they had taken the twins.

"Let's go inside. We can fill the other two in, and we should probably include Avayla and Theo. We are going to need their help taking care of the kids." Hongjoong said. He stepped forward and crouched in front of San. "We are going to get him back. You know we will."

San glanced up at him and nodded. Then he accepted his alpha's hand and let everyone guide him back inside.

Yunho brought him into their bedroom, which Jongho didn't mind at all, and the three of them curled up on the bed together with San in the middle.

The older alpha kept his face pressed to Jongho's chest, while the younger rubbed the back of his head gently.

They would get through this, they always did.

But that didn't stop Jongho from letting himself cry silently after his mate and San had fallen into an uneasy sleep.

.

.

.

.

" **A-Alpha!!** " Wooyoung shouted as San continued to thrust into him at a brutal pace.

He loved the growls and grunts coming from the older as he pounded into him from behind.

The omega buried his face in the pillow to muffle his screams, but that just caused San to grab his hair and pull his head back. " **You're voice is so sweet. I can't wait to hear more.** " He growled.

Wooyoung felt something stir inside of him at the words and he blinked several times. "S-San..." He whimpered, trying to turn his head to look back at his alpha.

" **So good for Alpha.** " San purred, pulling Wooyoung up so his back was to the alpha's chest. Then he started sucking on his neck and the omega was once again lost in the pleasure of being with his alpha.

San reached around and started to pump his length, making Wooyoung cry out. His head fell back onto San's shoulder.

He had waited all day for this moment. Ever since San had suggested it, Wooyoung had wanted nothing more than to come back and be with his mate.

" **Alpha... Close...** " The omega whimpered, his cries getting higher in pitch as he felt his orgasm getting closer.

After a couple more thrusts, San's knot burst and Wooyoung reached his peak at the same time.

They both stayed on their knees for several moments as they rode out their high and let their breathing slow.

Then San shifted them so they were laying down in bed. And he pulled Wooyoung in closer. "Thank you for that. I forgot just how much I missed your perfect little body and your sweet, sweet voice." The alpha purred, placing kisses all along Wooyoung's shoulder.

The omega purred and brought one of San's hands to his lips. The words seemed a little odd, but who was he to judge?

He was the leader of the most powerful pack known to their kind. It was his birthright, passed down through generations of omegas.

And his people were thriving under his rule. Peace was something that he would strive for, and he knew that with San by his side, and their new baby on the way, there was nothing they couldn't do together.

Wooyoung fell asleep with a smile on his face as San rubbed circles on his stomach and let out a low, rumbling growl.


	17. 16

Mingi chewed on his bottom lip as he pulled out the house's cellphone and stepped into his bedroom. He almost felt bad for having to do this. It made his wolf feel like he wasn't capable of taking care of anything himself. Which is not what an alpha liked to feel.

But he was also man enough to admit that he needed help... And if they were going to be facing Ultima again, they were going to need all the help he could get.

The line started to ring, and Mingi waited patiently.

He didn't get an answer the first time...

He called again.

And again.

Finally, on the fourth try, he got a "Hello?"

Mingi didn't recognize the voice.

"Um, yes, I'm calling for Colonel Gregson?" He asked hesitantly. The Colonel had always been the one to answer his call.

"Speaking?"

"It's an old friend of his." Mingi hesitated. He didn't feel comfortable giving his name over the phone, but he didn't feel like he had another choice. "Mingi."

There was silence on the other line.

"I will pass on your message."

Then the line went dead.

Mingi stared at his phone. "What the hell?"

"What's wrong?" Seonghwa asked, walking in to join him.

Just the presence of his omega alone was enough to sooth him. Mingi immediately pulled the older into his arms and nuzzled his mark. "I'm just stressing. The Colonel wasn't the one to answer the phone but they said they would pass on that I called." The alpha purred as Seonghwa tilted his head to the side.

Seonghwa hummed with pleasure. His entire body shook at the attention he was getting from his alpha. "I'm sure it'll be fine. He's never let us down in the past."

Mingi nodded into Seonghwa's neck. "You're right. Thank you precious." He held onto Seonghwa for a moment longer before they both left the bedroom to give the other's the news.

Yeosang looked worried from where he was sitting feeding Rhodey.

Avayla was next to him. She had started spending a lot of time with the beta, wanting to learn everything she could about being a mom.

Mingi smiled as he watched her. He still felt bad for reacting the way he did when he first found out that she was pregnant. Thankfully, she had willingly forgiven him instantly as long as he promised to watch himself around Theo.

And of course Seonghwa had helped with that too, but he wished he could control his wolf a little better at these times...

Avayla's head turned as her mate came shuffling down the hall with a mop of bed head. He rubbed his eyes and yawned, letting out a little sound that made her smile at him. Then he flopped onto the couch and placed his head in her lap.

"Someone's still waking up." Yeosang chuckled, running his free hand through the beta's hair.

Theo smiled up at him and stuck his tongue out playfully. Avayla flicked his forehead in response and he changed it to his lower lip sticking out as he turned and wrapped his arms around her stomach so he could press his face to her stomach.

Seonghwa let out a content chuckle as he started to prepare breakfast for everyone.

"Morning." Hongjoong said, walking out of the office. "Did you get a hold of him?"

"Not directly. Someone else answered the call, but they said they would pass along that it as me." Mingi said, watching his alpha for his reaction.

Hongjoong's forehead furrowed as he took in the information, but he nodded. "We can give him time. I'm afraid that's all we can do right now. Ultima is too far away for any of us to just go and scope it out."

"We need to decide what to do with the kids too." Seonghwa said quietly. "I don't think Avayla and Theo can watch them on their own. Especially with Rhodey being so young."

"I am not staying behind if that's what you are getting at." Yeosang looked over at them with a hard look in his eyes. "As much as it's going to kill me to leave him behind, I know he will be well cared for. I'm going to be there to help you put and end to this once and for all."

"Sangie-" Hongjoong started.

"No! Don't Sangie me. We are all tired of this happening! I know I'm the weakest one out of all of us, but I am going to be there this time to make sure they know once and for all to not mess with us anymore. You're going, right Hwa?" The beta asked, his eyes flashing to the older.

Seonghwa nodded immediately. "Wooyoung would do the same for us. There's no way he would be left behind."

Mingi had to laugh, knowing the young omega was probably the toughest one in the pack after all he's been through. He would definitely insist on going.

Hongjoong looked like he wanted to protest, but he let out a heavy sigh instead.

"We don't mind watching them Uncle Joong." Avayla said. Theo sat up next to her an nodded. "Riley and Gunner are old enough, and really the twins are too, that they could use some extra responsibility."

"That's a lot for you to handle all on your own though..." Hongjoong hesitated. "Especially with Rhodey being as young as he is."

Mingi could sense his hesitation. "Maybe we can ask some of the neighboring packs to come check in on them? Everyone is healthy and healed now. I'm sure they'd be willing to do that for us, especially since we took that antidote to them."

The alpha smiled when he felt Seonghwa lace their fingers together and lean into him. His wolf churned, taking it as a sign that his omega agreed with him and was proud of the suggestion.

Hongjoong also looked at him with a proud smile. "Ok. If Avayla and Theo are ok with that then we can talk to them and see if they will help us."

Theo just started nodding quickly, giving everyone a wide smile.

"Alright, let's go talk to them then." Hongjoong started walking to the back door.

Mingi turned to place a quick kiss on Seonghwa's forehead, then followed his alpha.

They stripped and shifted, running into their forest. Even as wolves it was a long run to the next territory, taking them almost an hour to get there. But the head alpha met them at the border, along with her mate. The pair listened patiently while Hongjoong did his best to explain what had happened to their pack and why most of them would be leaving.

Mingi also made sure to give them the heads up that Hunters would be in the area. This caused the alpha to panic at first, but there was enough trust built up that they let Mingi explain their relationship with the Colonel. "As long as you don't attack them, and just stay out of the way while they are here, you will be fine. They only know about our family, and we have known him for almost twenty years now."

"Be it on your head if they do anything to us." The alpha said, her eyes flashing red. "But you have done much for our family, so once the Hunters leave, we will try to check in on your pups." She gave a final nod and pulled her mate with her to head home.

Hongjoong sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "That almost took a turn for the worse."

"Yes, but it's better that they know the Hunters are coming. I'd rather they lay low once they enter the area so we don't risk anyone upsetting the other party." Mingi said slowly. He knew they would all have to be careful to not reveal that there were other wolves around, just in case.

Colonel Gregson had always done a great job at keeping his men under control, but it was better to be safe about things. The last time they were here, the only other wolves they had come into contact with was Maria and Kenneth.

"I agree. Well, let's head to the next one. We should warn everyone we can." Hongjoong said, shifting back into his wolf form.

Mingi followed suit and they ran off to warn the other families in the area.

.

.

.

.

When San woke up, it was obvious that it was late in the afternoon. At first he was upset with himself for sleeping all day because he could have been out looking for Wooyoung, but then he was reminded that there wasn't anything he could actually do right now.

He noticed he was still in Jongho's bed, so he rolled over and forced himself to get up. He still had responsibilities he needed to take care of, mainly making sure his daughters were ok. They were sure to be wondering what was going on.

Slowly, he made his way out to the living room. He could hear the others chatting peacefully and felt bad for interrupting.

Yunho was at his side as soon as he sensed him and pulled the alpha into a hug. "How are you doing?"

"Ok." San mumbled into his chest.

"Mingi called the Colonel today. We are waiting to hear back from him so we can get some help. He and Hongjoong are talking to the surrounding packs now to fill them in and warn them about Hunters being close to them now."

San just nodded along as he listened to the beta. All this basically told him was now they were back in the waiting game.

But he knew he would be foolish to run off on his own.

"Papa?" Lizbeth's small voice came from the side of the living room.

San's heart broke when he had to turn and face the twins. They were sitting on the floor with Riley and Gunner, all four looking in his direction.

"Hey babies, why don't you come with me for a minute?" He held out his hands for them to each take one and San took them to their room.

The three of them got situated in the large bean bag chair in the corner and sat in silence for a moment. He had no idea how to tell them...

Wooyoung was always good about telling them the truth. He hated hiding things from them, so he figured he would try to start there.

"I need to talk to you two about Mama." He started gently, looking at each of them in turn. "Mama was taken by some bad people, and that's why he isn't here right now." He could feel the tears coming as he watched the girls try to process this information.

"Why was Mama taken?" Lorelai asked.

"Because... Mama has ties to another pack." San grimaced, trying to find the right way to say this. "We didn't know about it until about a year before you were born. If he wanted to, he has a claim to lead that pack. Now he turned them down, because he wanted to stay with us, but I think they came to take him."

"Why?" Lizbeth asked, sitting up.

"I don't know baby. I think something must have happened and they decided they needed their leader."

"But wouldn't Mama just try to get away?" Lorelai nuzzled into San's side.

"If he has the ability to, he will." San whispered. His chest tightened at the thought. He knew he couldn't tell them that he was most likely being held against his will. "Mama would do everything he could to get back to you girls."

Lizbeth leaned into his side again. "And you Papa."

Now he had to work hard to fight back his tears as his heart constricted. He covered it up by pressing a kiss to the top of Lizbeth's hair, but when he closed his eyes it forced the tears lose.

He knew she was right. Wooyoung would do everything he could to get back home, but only if he had the ability to.

All San could do was pay attention to their link. So far, he hadn't felt anything that indicated Wooyoung was suffering, so he took that as a good sign.

Hopefully they were treating him well since they wanted him to be their leader...

But if Caius really was involved, there was no saying what could happen.

San just had to hope that everything would be ok.


	18. 17

When they didn't hear from the Colonel after two days, Hongjoong started to get worried. It wasn't like him to not get back to them.

Sure, they didn't talk all the time, but they had a close bond and the Colonel had always been good to them.

Mingi voiced his concerns too, but really all they could do was wait.

This also put the surrounding packs on edge too, though.

They had all agreed to look after the kids, most stating that Hongjoong and his pack had been so good to them so they were happy to return the favor. But the waiting game was driving them insane too.

The head alpha was lucky that he had Rhodey to distract him, at least, because his new son definitely helped him keep his mind off things.

And if it wasn't Rhodey then it was Riley and working with him on his and Gunner's training.

They were both turning into fine young alphas. And they both took after their fathers in many ways.

Riley was calm and collected, but had a presence around him whenever he was learning.

Gunner naturally followed behind him but was a little more outspoken when it came to voicing his opinions.

Seonghwa had taken over working with Lizbeth and Lorelai. He also made sure Avayla paid attention to everything he did, especially when it came to giving them their medication.

The twins promised they would remind her too, and try to take on the responsibility themselves. 

Avayla also left herself notes everywhere to help remind herself because it was crucial that they kept up with it. They were still too young to experience a heat, but the longer their body was used to the suppressants, the better things would be for them.

Theo also worked with his parents to go over everything they would need to do. They wouldn't have to worry about food because the pack had gone hunting every day and brought back one or two deer. They would section everything off to freeze some of the meat and dry the rest.

They also went to stock up on supplies too.

Hongjoong felt it would be better to have too much food then not enough. He wanted to try and make it so that neither Avayla or Theo would feel the need to leave the house, or territory, while the rest of the pack was gone.

He was planning on leaving a few signed checks in the check book, but he told them it was for emergencies only, especially since they hadn't found a new source of income yet.

That was going to be his first goal when they got back with Wooyoung.

Maybe a new leather worker would move into town and they could start selling pelts again... They had a nice stockpile of pelts and antlers just waiting in their shed.

Everything was set and ready.

All they needed was the Colonel.

When day three came around, Hongjoong felt the need to get out and go for a run. His nerve were too high and he couldn't handle the tension in the house.

Everyone ended up agreeing with him and the seven of them made their way into he backyard.

Avayla encouraged them to go, trying to keep the mood like by saying it would be a good test run for her and Theo.

Once goodbyes were said to the kids, Hongjoong led the way into the trees.

_Should we go for another hunt since we are out?_ Jongho asked, trotting over to him and licking his neck once.

_Yeah we can keep an eye out._ Hongjoong said, swiveling his ears back and forth.

The group fell into a gentle lope as they worked their way through the forest. The only one trailing behind was San.

It was hard for the younger alpha to keep his spirits up these days, but Hongjoong couldn't blame him. He was always reminded of how it felt when Yeosang had his mating mark burned away... He couldn't imagine what San must be feeling right now, knowing that he could still feel Wooyoung but couldn't reach him.

And they were all ready for the time that Wooyoung's mark was burned away as well.

Why Ultima hadn't touched it yet, no one knew, but they didn't like it. It just pointed the finger at Caius even more.

But Hongjoong's only worry with that theory was that if Caius was still alive, wouldn't he want to torture Wooyoung to draw San to him?

It didn't sit right with the head alpha. Nothing seemed to line up or make sense.

But he did know he was going to give Ultima a piece of his mind when they could finally approach them.

Hongjoong fell back and let Jongho lead the group so he could walk next to San.

_Are you doing ok?_ He asked through a private link.

The soot wolf huffed and let his head dip down a little. _Yeah. I guess._

_We are going to find him Sannie. I promise. I'm not going to give up on him. If we don't hear from the Colonel today I say we head that direction and see what we can do._

San's head shot up and he gave Hongjoong a hopeful look. _Are you sure?_

_Yes. You've done a lot better in this situation than I would ever do._ Hongjoong leaned over to rub their heads together.

The group continued on for a little ways, chatting peacefully amongst themselves as the sun moved across the sky.

Hongjoong was just about to suggest they head back when he felt his fur stand on edge. He turned to his right, ears forward and legs tense as he stared into the trees.

The others sensed his anxiety and froze, all scanning the area as well.

Something didn't feel right.

_Get back to the house. Try to stay together._ Hongjoong said quickly.

All seven of them pivoted and sent dirt flying as they broke into a run.

But Hongjoong didn't make it far.

Something was fired at him and tangled itself around his limbs. He yelped and fell forward, receiving a mouth full of dirt and leaves as he tried to free his legs.

Yeosang was by his side instantly, pulling at the chords that had been weighted down by metal balls.

_Sangie go!_ Hongjoong whimpered as he flailed on the ground.

His beta ignored him and kept pulled.

This earned him his own set of chords, but this one hit him in the head, wrapping around his neck and muzzle.

It was utter chaos as the pack tried to figure out what to do.

Yunho dodged one of the flying ropes, only to step in a trap that had him hanging from a tree by one legs. He howled in pain a the rope cut into his ankle.

This set Jongho off and he tried to jump off the tree to snap at the rope. He missed and landed hard on the ground, yelping as his front leg twisted.

_Don't shift!_ Hongjoong called out when he felt Yunho getting ready to so he could use his hands.

Mingi, Seonghwa, and San all huddled together, trying to figure out where the attackers were coming from.

Hongjoong twisted so he could bite at the rope around Yeosang's neck. Luckily it wasn't tight, but the beta was furiously trying to push the rope off his muzzle with his paw.

Another yelp made his head jerk up and he saw Seonghwa tangled up on the ground with San. They both flailed as the ropes shot at them held them together.

Mingi roared and went to help his omega when two more shots were fired. He was thrown back into a tree and hit it with enough force that the trunk splintered.

Jongho was the only one left standing now. His hackles rose as he once again used the tree to propel himself into the air and snap at the rope trapping Yunho.

This time he succeeded and Yunho fell to the ground in a heap while his alpha rolled to the side and whimpered in pain. He hopped up on three legs and ducked under another attack.

Only to stumble into a spring trap that snapped shut on his already injured leg.

Both he and Yunho cried out as the beta hurried to his side.

That's when about fifty Hunters ran out of the trees and surrounded them.

Yunho was immediately shot with the rope weapon and forced to the ground. Everyone else had guns pointed at them too.

"FREEZE!" One of them shouted when Hongjoong started to snarl and stand up. "We've got you cornered so there's nothing you can do!"

The head alpha looked around and had to admit that the Hunters were right... But why were they doing this?

"Which one of you is the leader?" One man stepped forward and let his long gun rest against his shoulder with the tip pointed at the sky. "Is it you?" He asked, looking at Mingi.

The black wolf snarled in response.

"We know what you are." The man snapped.

_Joongie, what do we do?_ Yeosang asked, whimpering next to him.

The alpha felt like he didn't have a choice right now... So he shifted, causing several guns to be pointed in his direction.

He stayed in a crouched position to not cause any alarm and stared at the man, who looked unsettled as he glanced back at Hongjoong's red eyes. " **I am.** " He growled, his voice deep and rumbling.

The man took a moment to collect himself before he turned to fully face the alpha. "Wow. I almost didn't want to believe the reports. You really are freaks." He sneered.

Hongjoong felt his entire body shake with rage as he tried to keep himself under control. " **I want to speak to Colonel Gregson.** "

"Sorry. Not happening. But thank you for confirming for me that we found the right group! How does it happen?" He asked. When Hongjoong stayed silent, he sighed and pointed the gun at him. "We can do this the easy way, or the hard way."

" **I'm not telling you a thing until I can speak to Colonel Gregson. He knows who I am, he will want to talk to me.** "

"No he won't." The man said simply.

Now Hongjoong was starting to get pissed off. " **Why not?** "

"Because my dear grandfather is dead."

Mingi snarled and started trying to break free again. The rage pour off him as he stared at the man. It made Seonghwa whimper next to him as he and San tried to become untangled from each other.

Hongjoong's mouth just fell open as he tried to process what the man had said.

"I'm the new Colonel now. And you better believe that things are going to be changing." He started to swing his gun around as he took a step closer to the alpha. "My grandfather was weak. Forming partnerships with the one creature we have been triad to kill our entire lives. Pathetic." He spat.

Mingi started to snarl louder and two Hunters fired their guns, weighing him down with more rope and metal traps.

Jongho whimpered from where he was still stuck in the trap. Blood was staining his black and tan leg. He lowered his head and glanced at Hongjoong. _What are we going to do?_ Then his eyes flashed to where Yunho was trying to reach out to him with one paw.

_Avayla? Theo?_ Hongjoong called out while he focused on the new Colonel. "Giving us a chance wasn't weakness. Your grandfather took the time to understand that we are creatures with families and feelings too." He said, trying to keep himself calm.

"He was a fool. You're nothing but vicious beasts who would kill us in a heart beat, and that one right there proves it." The man pointed his gun at Mingi.

_What is it Uncle Joong?_ Theo's voice came through.

Jongho and Yunho both let out long whimpers at the sound of their son's voice and Yunho tried even harder to get to his alpha.

_We've run into trouble. Do not leave the house. Do not let the kids out of your sight. Things have moved up and you and Avayla are in charge starting now. We will come home as soon as we can. Once you don't feel us anymore, try to get a message to the surrounding packs. Keep them on high alert._ Hongjoong said quickly.

_What happened?_ The beta responded, his worry coming through.

_Listen to your Uncle Joong baby. Be strong, and we love you_. Yunho said, his voice shaking even through the link.

_Mama... I love you too..._ Theo's voice was weak and everyone could feel his confusion.

"Alright, this is the only time I will give you a choice. You can travel as a creature or as a man. But you're coming with us either way." The man said, glaring down at Hongjoong.

"You're not going to just kill us?" Hongjoong said, daring to try his luck.

He watched as the leader sauntered forward and crouched in front of him. The only reason he could do this was because he was hiding behind fifty guns. Hongjoong would rip him apart in a second. "No. I'm not. It's time to turn over a new leaf. _I'm going to study you._ "

The air grew thick with stress as Hongjoong felt his entire pack freeze.

"I'm going to learn everything there is to know about you. So that I can use it to destroy your _filthy race once and for all_. I knew you would try to contact him eventually. I've been waiting for this moment for years now."

_Y-Years?!_ Mingi whimpered, lowering his head to the ground.

Hongjoong looked at his friend as his shoulders fell. "At least tell me how he died?"

The man scoffed. "Old age, what else? The fool was too stubborn to die any other way. Of course he would hold onto his title for as long as possible."

This was why their race stayed away from humans... The pack looked like they hadn't aged a day in the eighteen years that they'd know each other...

Hongjoong knew it was going to happen one day. But finding out like this made it so much worse.

_Cooperate_. Hongjoong passed to the others. _Shift and cooperate. We can figure it out as we go. Hopefully they won't know about the link. Please_. He looked at Mingi and Jongho especially.

They showed their obedience by shifting into their human forms. Jongho did so with a lot of whimpering and hisses. He held his bleeding arm close to his chest. The trap had left large gashes in his skin, and in a few of the large holes Hongjoong could see down to the bone. Yunho closed the distance between them and wrapped his arms around his alpha, sobbing quietly out of both pain for the younger and fear.

The new Colonel looked pleased with himself. "Bind them and get them in the truck. And give them some blankets at least." He said with disgust.

All seven members of the pack had their wrists tied in front of them and long blankets thrown over their shoulders. No one took the time to wrap Jongho's arm, so he left a trail of blood behind him as they walked and the color slowly started to train from his face.

They were all loaded into a large cargo truck with the ends of their ropes tied to the sides. It would be so easy to just shift and rip the ropes apart... But guns were trained on them the entire time.

Hongjoong looked at each of his pack members one by one.

At least the Hunters didn't stop them from interacting, although they didn't hide their disgust either.

Mingi pressed his lips to the top of Seonghwa's head as the omega leaned into him.

Yunho tried to fuss over Jongho the best he could, but the alpha was having a hard time staying awake. San looked utterly defeated... But he still leaned forward to look at Jongho. "Please, at least try to stop the bleeding. He's going to die if you don't." The alpha begged, looking at the Hunters.

One of them pursed his lips, but grabbed a first aid kit and started to patch up the youngest's arm. Yunho watched every move, his eyes flashing sapphire blue occasionally.

Yeosang whimpered and turned to press his nose to Hongjoong's neck.

Hongjoong felt himself calm down a little at the touch from his mate.

_Joongie... What are we going to do?_ Yeosang asked, glancing at where Jongho was now leaning into Yunho, still looking pale.

_Stay strong, and stay together. It's the most we can do for now. We will get out of this. I'll make sure of it._


	19. 18

Mingi did his best to stay calm as they stayed in the back of the truck. He knew he could rip every one of the Hunters apart if he wanted to, but there were too many others outside the vehicle and it would risk putting the others in danger.

Plug Hongjoong had asked him not to... So he would follow his alpha's orders.

Hearing the Colonel Gregson had passed left a hole in his heart that Mingi didn't know would appear. He respected the man so much and now that he was gone...

He was happy to know that the Colonel had passed from old age. Hopefully it was in his sleep. Supposedly it was the most peaceful way to go, so Mingi felt it's what he deserved.

As he was jostled around, Mingi couldn't help but think about their first interactions together. The Colonel had been so ready to kill them for destroying a town, but the kindness of his heart showed when he had been willing to give them a chance to explain their side of the story.

And he chose to fight by their side twice, even when his own men gave him push back.

Mingi sighed and closed his eyes.

_I know. I'm sad too. Gunner is going to be devastated._ Seonghwa said quietly, still leaning into his alpha's shoulder.

The alpha cringed and let out a long sigh. Seonghwa was right...

When they had told Colonel Gregson that they wanted to name Gunner in honor of him, and the help they had received from the Hunters, he had been deeply touched and tended to spend a little more time with the young alpha over the other kids.

It was obvious that the Colonel had a soft spot in his heart for their son, and it made Mingi wonder what had happened to the man's own relationship with his grandson for them to be so drastically different...

_We will do something to honor him when we get home._ Hongjoong said.

Mingi opened his eyes to look at his alpha an gave him a grateful smile. _Thanks Joong._

_He did a lot for all of us. It's the least we can do._

_You mean IF we get home._ San grumbled from the corner.

Mingi turned to look at him with wide eyes, then quickly shut them. They couldn't give away the fact that they could talk to each other right now. _What is that supposed to mean?_

The older huffed and pulled his knees to his chest. _Just stating the obvious._

_San, don't start._ Hongjoong said, his voice getting harsh.

They could all sense the pain rolling off the alpha. Every minute they kept driving took him further and further away from where they believed Wooyoung was being kept.

Mingi knew he would be frustrated too, so he couldn't get too mad at San... _We are going to get out San. But we need to stay positive. When have we ever failed when we stick together?_

_And you can still feel him, right?_ Yunho asked.

_Yes... But I think that scares me more than if I couldn't. Why have they kept the mark? Why haven't I felt them torturing him?_ San whimpered.

"Hey! Shut up!" One of the Hunters shouted from the front of the van.

Mingi turned to look at him and growled in warning, but was silenced by several guns being pointed in his direction.

_Just try to stay calm, please_. Hongjoong pleaded.

Both San and Mingi sent apologies through the link and things fell silent again between them. All that could be heard was the roar of the engine and Jongho's occasional whimpers as he was jostled in his seat while he slept.

.

.

.

.

"Sir, we need you to inspect the crops today and decide what we should do for the upcoming winter." Lionel hummed as he scanned his clipboard. "And then you have a meeting with the midwife to take a look at your baby."

Wooyoung perked up at the sound of that. He loved hearing how his baby was doing, and while it was still a little too soon to determine the gender, he knew that San hoped it was a boy. "Thanks Lionel. We will get started as soon as San gets here."

His alpha went with him everywhere to make sure he was doing ok. The pregnancy really was taking a toll on him.

Wooyoung felt tired all the time, and on days like today when he had to walk for several hours and be in the heat, he was especially drained. He also needed to take extra doses of his medicine to keep his mind straight.

It was the weirdest thing.

He could tell when his medicine was starting to wear off because he started getting really confused about his surroundings.

There was even one day that San had to hold him down to get him to calm down because he didn't recognize him.

That had been an awful moment and Wooyoung spent several hours trying to apologize to his alpha.

But San was so understanding and forgiving. And most of all he was patient.

The door to the meeting room they were waiting in opened and Wooyoung smiled as San walked over to him.

He watched his alpha walk forward, his strong arms swinging by his side.

"Hello my love." San purred, cupping Wooyoung's chin and tilting his head back.

"Sannie." Wooyoung smiled.

Then his vision blurred for a moment and the lines of San's face started to change. The omega shook his head and took a step back so he could press the heels of his hands to the sides of his head.

Something wasn't right...

He was missing something... But he couldn't place what it was.

"Here, I knew it was about time." His alpha said with a commanding tone.

Wooyoung quickly swallowed the thick liquid and swayed in place. He blinked several times before he noticed Lionel giving him a nervous look. "I'm ok." He said, placing a hand on his belly.

San let out a low growl and nuzzled his mating mark, sending his rosemary scent all over the room.

As the omega inhaled it, he smiled and leaned into the tall alpha. His mate. He leaned into his mate.

"Better?" The older asked, pulling back to cup Wooyoung's chin again.

"Yes. Thank you. I really hate that feeling. I always feel so... empty or out of place." Wooyoung muttered, leaning forward to rest his forehead against San's broad chest. He felt his alpha tense and heard Lionel suck in a breath.

"I'll see if maybe there isn't something else we can do to help you, ok?" His alpha said while rubbing his back.

"Ok. Let's go get this tour over with. I'm already feeling tired today." Wooyoung stood up and looked at the other omega. He thought he saw a hint of sadness in the older man's eyes, but quickly disregarded it.

Jacobi met them in the great hall, and the four of them started to make their way out to the farms.

Everything was situated inside of a large, several foot thick wall that protected them from any attacking packs. The back half of the city was built into a mountain side that was so steep, no one in their right mind would try to enter that way.

Houses were being repaired constantly to prepare them for the harsh winters here, which is what they needed to start preparing for even though it was still early spring.

Winter's came much faster here, which meant their growing season was short.

Wooyoung had already started organizing groups to go to settlements or human cities to pick up other supplies that would be needed.

The next run would happen in a couple of days, they just needed his updated list after taking a look at the farms and then the animals.

Everyone they passed on the street stopped to bow with respect as Wooyoung passed by.

He would nod in return and in greeting, wanting to show the people just how much he cared for them.

Many called him the best leader they had seen in centuries because, even for an omega, Wooyoung was extremely kind-hearted and did his best to put his people before himself.

San told him about how he went to a human city himself to get medicine for his people one time. Wooyoung had no memory of this, but Jacobi was quick to back it up.

He hated that this pregnancy was doing things to his mind... But he vaguely remembered needing to take a potion so he could have kids. He remembered the pain... Hours of screaming and wishing he were dead. And he remembered being forced to drink it by others, but their faces were always blurred, so he couldn't tell who they were.

But they felt important...

"Love." San hissed, leaning over to whisper in his ear.

Wooyoung's head snapped up and saw that they were approaching the first farm.

The beta in charge bowed his head. "Welcome, Sir. Thank you for coming today."

"Thank you for having me. Please show me around." Wooyoung said, rubbing his stomach as he walked. He hummed when San rubbed his back at the same time.

The tour was pretty simple. They took inventory of the expected crops and tried to run scenarios of what would happen for an early frost. They also determined how many extra hands would be needed come harvest time so that way they could prepare and have others volunteer to fill those slots.

That was one of the things Wooyoung loved about his pack. They were all so willing to help each other.

A few days ago when one of the forges had caught on fire, everyone nearby had run with buckets of water to help put it out and make sure the family running it was ok. Then they all pitched in to help rebuild everything before Wooyoung even had to ask them to.

As things started to wrap up, San started supporting the omega by keeping an arm wrapped around his waist as his energy slowly faded.

They made their way to the palace as soon as they could and San picked Wooyoung up as soon as the doors closed.

The younger hummed and leaned into his alpha's chest, grateful to be off his feet. "Thanks Sannie." He hummed.

"Let's get you in bed." The older said, hurrying down the hall to their room.

He set Wooyoung down on the bed and helped prop him up with pillows while they waited for the midwife.

The omega, named Thomas, came a short time later. "Hello, Sir! Sorry I'm late. How are you feeling?"

"Tired. Am I supposed to be this tired during pregnancy?" Wooyoung asked, feeling his anxiety rise a little.

Thomas set his bag down on the bed and took a moment before he started speaking. "It's not abnormal..." He said as he looked up. His eyes flashed to San for a moment then back to Wooyoung. It almost looked like he was hiding something... "But I can see if we can find anything to help give you some energy. The cure you went through to have pups took a lot out of your body, so it's having to work overtime to get through this."

Wooyoung chewed on his bottom lip. Something about that just didn't sound right... "Why would everything else be fine though?" he asked.

"Because pregnancy is already really hard on your body. Just trust me, ok?" Thomas said, arching an eyebrow as he came over and lifted up Wooyoung's shirt. He started to run his hands over his stomach and Wooyoung instantly felt himself relax.

"How is it?" San asked, placing a hand on Wooyoung's shoulder.

Thomas continued the motion for a few more minutes, then smiled. "The baby feels healthy. It's at a normal size and has a strong heartbeat. In a couple of weeks you should be able to sense the gender, if not then I can tell you."

Wooyoung leaned his head against San's arm and smiled down at his rounding stomach. He couldn't wait to have his first pup with his mate. It was going to be so special. It...

He paused. Something poked at the back of his mind. That thought didn't feel right... First pup...

Slowly, he traced a few places on his skin where it was stretched out. It looked old.. Older than this pregnancy.

Just as he was about to ask about it, San turned his head and connected their lips while running his fingers over the mating mark.

Wooyoung hummed and instantly forgot about everything except the contact with his alpha.

"It's going to be ok." San said, pulling back a little. "I can't wait to raise our little pup together." He rubbed their noses together, then climbed over the omega to sit next to him on the bed. "And we will be together forever." San said as he pulled Wooyoung to him. "Just you and me and our pup. You'll always be mine."


	20. 19

When the trucks finally came to a stop, Jongho was the first one pulled out of the back. A man that was twice the size of him picked him up and threw him over his shoulder, unbothered by the fact that he was only wrapped in a blanket.

The alpha instantly felt humiliated as he was carried inside, especially because he whimpered whenever his leg shifted.

He looked up to see the others being led in one by one and his eyes found his beta immediately. _Don't fight them. Just let this happen baby._

_But your leg..._

Jongho just shook his head. _It will heal._ He winced when the man shifted him. _Please. Just try to stay calm. There's too many of them and too many guns._

Yunho looked down at the ground, showing his respect for his alpha's wishes.

_And Yunho, promise me something else._ Jongho waited for the beta to look up again. _Promise me if you will get the chance, you will leave._

_No! I wo-_

_Don't make me order you._ Jongho cut him off. _I'm in no shape to travel with this leg. And Wooyoung still needs us._

Yunho started to shake as they walked inside a large building. _Jong..._

"Take them to separate cells." The new colonel said. "Make sure they are locked up good and tight." He turned around and walked up to Hongjoong. "And don't even think about trying to escape. We will have guns trained on you at all times."

And to prove his point, he pointed at the ceiling where they had camera and a gun mounted next to it.

Jongho flinched at the smell of wolfsbane, which meant the bullets were probably laced with it.

He looked up and locked eyes with his mate one more time. Yunho silently pleaded with him and Jongho tried to give him a reassuring smile. _It's going to be ok love. We will get through this like we always do._

Then he watched as Yunho was pulled into a room, along with the others.

"Leave this one out, we will start with him." The Colonel said, and Jongho knew he was talking about him.

The man holding him carried him down the hall and into a larger room where he was dumped onto the floor.

Jongho cried out in pain and rolled so that he wasn't putting pressure on his leg.

_What happened?_ Yunho asked.

_Nothing. Don't worry about me._ Jongho said as he watched the man start to circle him. He could feel Yunho pressing against his consciousness, and he could sense that the older was scared, but he did his best to ignore it.

"So. You're what they call an 'alpha', correct?"

Jongho just glared at him. He wasn't going to give this bastard anything. Not after what he had promised to do to them.

"I suggest you cooperate. You don't know what I'm capable of." The man sneered.

The alpha just closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He let his mind wander to where he was happiest. With Yunho and Theo. With the pack. With Wooyoung.

Then he screamed in pain as a whip cracked right over his wound. His blood seared as he felt his wolf surging forward. The need to rip the man's head off was so strong, but he forced it away with the need to protect the others.

The whip cracked again and again he screamed.

"Answer the question!"

_Baby what is happening?_

_Jongho what is going on?_

_Where are you?_

_Jongho!_

He could hear his pack calling to him, but Jongho couldn't find it in himself to answer. Not when he knew they would hear the pain in his voice as his leg was whipped yet again.

"Yes!" He finally shouted as tears rolled down his cheeks. "Yes I'm an alpha!"

Two Hunters came and dragged him off the floor and proceeded to chain him to the wall, his arms spread wide.

Thankfully they didn't touch his leg so he could hold it up to keep it off the ground, and he tried to twist himself to keep it covered.

"And tell me. What does it mean to be an alpha?" The Colonel asked, leaning against a table and crossing his arms.

Jongho took a deep shuddering breath. "What is it you hope to get out of this?" He asked, glaring at the man.

The whip cracked again and tore open Jongho's chest. He clenched his eyes shut and felt his lower lip tremble.

"Let's play a game, shall we? I'm going to ask you questions. If you stay silent, I'm going to take that as a yes or that I'm correct. If you say something I don't like." He wiggled the whip back and forth. "And if you continue to not cooperate, I'll pull in one of the others and torture them instead."

Jongho's shoulders drooped in defeat. He couldn't let that happen...

"And alpha is the leader of the pack, correct?" The disgust was obvious in his voice.

"Yes." Jongho said, hanging his head.

"Good boy." The man chuckled. "And you said you are an alpha, but you're not the leader? Or did you lie to me earlier?"

"A pack can have more than one alpha. We are not animals like you seem to think. We are capable of human emotions." He lifted his head up a little and saw that the new Colonel looked unimpressed.

"According to my grandfather's journals, there is also a 'beta' rank and an 'omega' rank. Is this true?"

"Yes."

"And what are their roles?"

Jongho flinched. "Don't the journals say?" He yelped and the whip tore another opening in his chest and tears came to his eyes.

"Unfortunately the idiot destroyed most of his journals. The only one I found came with basic information." The Colonel growled. "Now answer the question!"

"Betas are often hunters or trackers while omegas take care of the packs." Jongho said, trying to keep his answer as simple as possible.

The man really was clueless, and he didn't know if that was a good thing or bad thing...

Ignorance could be dangerous though.

"And shifting into a wolf. You all can do that?" There was a hint of fear in the man's voice now.

Jongho wanted to use this to his advantage and let his inner wolf out, but he knew not to. "Yes."

"How?"

The question confused him. "I-I can't explain it. It's just something we can do. It's another part of our being. Our soul."

The Colonel hummed and flipped through the journal in his hand. "What about mates? Tell me about them."

Now the alpha's wolf started to bristle again. He took a deep breath and tried to push it away. "I believe humans call it marriage. It's the same concept."

He watched as the man slowly lifted his eyes and a sneer crossed his face. "So which one is yours?" When he was met with silence he tilted his head back. "I think I know. It was the one reaching for you, wasn't it? The really tall one?" He snapped his fingers and two men left the room.

Jongho's eyes widened. _Yunho? Yunho baby I need you to stay calm._

_What's going on?!_ His beta cried out.

_Just stay calm. Please._

A moment later, the door to the room was opened and Yunho was brought in and immediately forced into a chair. He had lost his blanket but no one seemed to care.

His eyes found Jongho's and he started to shiver. _I don't want you to talk to them, ok? Let me do the talking._

"Is this him?" The Colonel asked as Yunho was forced around and tied to the chair.

"Yes. Please don't hurt him." Jongho said, watching everything the man did.

"Only if you cooperate. Now, how does this mating work?"

Jongho just shook his head. "Why does this matter? You have us! You won!"

The Colonel marched forward and grabbed Jongho's jaw, squeezing it to the point where he yelped. "Stupid mutt. This is just step one! I will find out EVERYTHING I need to know to obliterate your race from the planet!" He withdrew his hand and slapped Jongho, then dug his thumb into the alpha's open wound.

He screamed in pain as he felt the thumb being twisted back and forth.

A snarl came from the other side of the room and he cracked his eyes open enough to see Yunho pulling at his restraints. His eyes were bright blue.

_N-No... D-Don't..._ Jongho begged.

His beta faltered for just a moment, but when Jongho screamed again, Yunho shifted. The ropes binding him to the chair were ripped to shreds and he lunged for the Colonel.

But the Hunters were ready.

They rushed forward with large poles that had rings on the end that opened and closed.

Two closed around Yunho's neck coming from different directions and one more locked around his stomach.

He snarled in response and tried to turn to one of the Hunters, but the poles prevented it. Just as he tried to attack again, an electric shock ran through all three poles and Yunho howled with pain as he convulsed in the air.

"S-S-Stop! Please!" Jongho sobbed as he felt his mate's pain. "Please!"

The Colonel withdrew the hand he had been using to rip open Jongho's leg again and held it up. The other's stopped the electric current and Yunho fell to the floor.

Jongho panted heavily as he hung limp in his restraints. He couldn't take his eyes off where Yunho was twitching. His wolf begged to be set free, but more Hunters had come in with electric loops.

_Jongho. What is happening?_ Hongjoong asked, sending his concern over the link.

"Very interesting." The Colonel said as he looked from Jongho to Yunho. "So anger causes the shift?" He looked back at the alpha.

Jongho was still having a hard time catching his breath as his vision blurred. His leg throbbed and he could feel fresh trails of blood running over his skin. "It... Can..." He said, his head hanging lower.

"But you can control it?"

"Y-Yes... Sometimes... Please, don't hurt him anymore... I'm begging you. Let him and the others go."

The man laughed, leaning back as he did. "You there." He pointed to one of the Hunters. "Take a blood sample from him. I want to know everything about them."

The Hunter came forward with several vials and held them up to Jongho's wound.

_Jongho!_ Hongjoong called out again.

_Hunters... Tell others to not fight them... I'll try to keep you safe..._ Jongho answered.

_No, we are in this together. We are going to figure this out._ His head alpha said. But he wasn't able to hide how scared he was.

_If... You can get out... Run. As fast and as far... As you can..._

_Jongho don't even go there._ Hongjoong pleaded.

But the alpha could feel his resolve weakening as he watched the Colonel crouch in front of Yunho and lift his eye lid up. "So the blue eyes. What does that mean?" He asked, looking over his shoulder at Jongho. "And I noticed the big one had red eyes."

Jongho's wolf retreated, begging for him not to answer, but also terrified for its mate. "Please... I'll tell you anything you want..."

The man stood up and walked back over to Jongho. He grabbed the alpha's jaw again, smearing his own blood across his face. "You bet you will. Now that you know what I'm willing to do." He turned around. "Take the mutt away and make sure he's contained."

Jongho whimpered as he watched his mate get dragged out by the metal loops around him. His heart broke at the thought of what Yunho had just gone through, and it shattered when he realized he was going to be forced to divulge their secrets. It was the last thing he wanted to do. But he needed to protect his family.

When the Hunter was done taking his blood, he rushed from the room and another one took his place and started to bandage him up.

By now he hardly felt anything.

His chest was also treated and when that was released from the wall. He collapsed on the floor.

"Don't get too comfortable." The Colonel said, grabbing a fistful of Jongho's hair and yanking his head up. "We are only just beginning."


	21. 20

Seonghwa knew something was wrong. Jongho had stopped responding and he had heard Yunho being taken away and then brought back.

_I'm scared._ He said to Mingi through just a personal link.

_I know precious. But we all need to try and stay calm._

_What do you think is going to happen to us?_ Seonghwa asked as he leaned his head against the cold wall.

_I don't know. But even my wolf is scared to come out so we need to tread carefully. If they ask for anything, give them the bare minimum when it comes to your answer._ Mingi's voice was gentle but firm as he spoke.

Seonghwa nodded even though he knew the other couldn't see him. _Do you think the kids are ok?_

His alpha was silent for a long moment. _I'm sure they are fine. We raised a strong daughter, and she has a good mate by her side._

_Oh, so you're finally admitting it?_ Seonghwa teased. He could practically hear Mingi grumbling from whatever cell he was in right now.

Footsteps came from the hall.

_Stay calm everyone._ Hongjoong warned.

There was a yelp of pain and Seonghwa recognized San's voice. _San!_

_I'm ok... They are coming to take your blood._ He said.

And sure enough, a moment later, Seonghwa's cell opened and three Hunter's came in. Two had large guns in their hands and stood by the entrance while another walked up with a medical kit. She untied Seonghwa's hands and kept one arm in her hand.

He flinched when a wet cloth was run over his skin, then bit back his own yelp as she stuck a thick needle in his arm and started taking vial after vial of blood.

Once she had what she wanted, she withdrew the needle and walked out of the cell.

Seonghwa was thankful that they didn't tie him up again, but his arm ached from the needle now. He pressed his thumb to the puncture to try and stop the blood flow.

_Are you ok?_ Mingi asked softly.

_Yes. Just sore... Why do they need our blood?_

_I'm assuming they are going to run tests._ His alpha growled. _The bastard did say he planned on studying us._

A whimper came from one of the stalls and Seonghwa perked up.

_Yunho!_ Mingi called out, recognizing the whine. _Yunho what happened?_

The whimper slowly morphed into a scream, indicating the beta had shifted.

And he didn't stop...

"Yunho! Someone see what's wrong with him!" Mingi shouted, pounding on his cell door.

Seonghwa stood up too and looked through the small bars. There were no Hunters around from what he could see...

"Yunho what's going on?" Mingi shouted, still pounding on the door.

Then there was a gunshot and the alpha cried out in pain.

" **MINGI!** " Seonghwa shouted, now pounding on his own door.

_Stop! Seonghwa,_ ** _stop!_** He ordered through the link and Seonghwa froze. _You'll just trigger the g-gun t-too._

The omega glanced at the ceiling and growled.

**_We all need to take a deep breath and calm down before things get worse._** Hongjoong said, asserting himself as their head alpha. _Mingi, are you ok?_

_It burns like a fucking fire... But I think it'll ok... It grazed my shoulder._

_Yunho, are you ok?_ Hongjoong asked a little slower.

Another scream came from the beta's cell.

Yunho, can you hear me? Hongjoong's voice shook a little through their link. They could all feel their friend's pain...

_M... M... Ba..._ Yunho tried to say through the link.

_Take a deep breath._

_B... Ba..._ The beta screamed again, louder than before, then was silent.

_Yunho!_ Mingi shouted. _Yunho answer us!_

_I think he passed out..._ Yeosang said. _I can't hear an-nything... What d-did they d-d-do to him?_

_I don't know..._ Hongjoong's voice was quiet. _We need to try and stay calm, though, and figure out what we can do to get out of this._

Seonghwa let out a small whimper as he curled up in the corner of his cell. How were they supposed to get out of this? The Hunters had thought of every precaution out there... If the gun had fired at Mingi just for pounding on his cell door, then there was someone watching them at all times.

He closed his eyes, trying to think of something they could do to get out of here, but his mind just kept coming up blank.

_Don't give up hope, my love._ Mingi's voice entered his head once more. _We've been through tough times before and always come out together. We are a team. And we can get through anything we set out minds to. Together._

_._

.

.

.

"Sir! An urgent report from our scouts!"

Wooyoung turned to see a beta officer running toward him with a rolled up piece of paper. He took it and read over it, narrowing his eyes as he did so.

San placed a hand on his shoulder and leaned over to read the paper too.

"Hunters? Here?" The alpha said, turning to the beta.

"Yes, that's what we believe. There have been several large vehicles far to the east of us and a large gathering of humans."

Wooyoung read through the note again. Hunters... He closed his eyes when his vision became fuzzy. Why did the word Hunters ring a bell?

He groaned and bent forward, keeping a hand on his growing belly as his head started to pound.

San crouched in front of him and placed his hands on the omega's shoulders. "Wooyoung, deep breath. Push through it."

Wooyoung shook his head. Why? Why did that word affect him so much?

"Get his medicine!" San ordered as Wooyoung started to sink to his knees.

Images of... Of a battle flashed in his mind.

Wolves everywhere.

And humans.

His breathing started to get faster.

San reached out to touch him and he flinched away. It didn't feel right. But... Rosemary.

Wooyoung inhaled deeply and his eyelids fluttered.

"Wooyoung, baby, take a deep breath." A voice said. He wanted to say it was San... but it didn't sound right.

He shook his head.

A soot wolf crossed his his mind.

And then another.

They were fighting each other.

Two wolves.

Two San's...

"Wooyoung drink. Think of the baby."

A glass with green liquid was held up to his lips and was tilted forward while a hand was placed on the back of his head to hold him in place.

"Please, Sir, drink. We need you." Someone off to the side begged.

"Drink." The voice in front of him ordered gently.

When the liquid passed his lips, something in him told him to stop, but it was being forced into his mouth by the person holding him.

He gulped it down to keep from choking.

His heart started to calm instantly and his head stopped pounding. Once his vision started to came back, he took in how fuzzy everything was, then he blinked once and noticed San sitting in front of him.

"There he is. You really need to not wait until the last minute to take this." His alpha scolded. "You need to think of the baby." He placed a hand on Wooyoung's stomach and rubbed it gently.

"S... San?" Wooyoung said, the word almost feeling foreign on his tongue.

A hand cupped his cheek and started to rub it gently. "Yes baby. It's me. Let's get you in bed so we can rest." San turned to speak to the beta in the room. "Set up a patrol. We need to know where the humans are at all times. We can risk them coming in and destroying what Wooyoung has worked so hard to build."

The beta nodded and turned to Wooyoung, who just nodded in approval as San lifted him off the ground and rushed him to the bed.

Everything was spinning. He was still seeing wolves flying across his memories.

Especially a giant black one...

It terrified him.

And the two soot wolves...

What was going on?

Then he placed a hand on his stomach again and the faces of two little girls flashed in front of his eyes for a split second.

"What?!" He cried out, looking around the room. "Where am I?"

Suddenly he didn't recognize any of his surroundings. Not the walls, the furniture, the ornate decor.

He went to looked at who was holding him, but as his head tilted back, another one bent down and he felt a nose nuzzling his mating mark so he couldn't see the face.

But he got rosemary.

"San..." He whimpered as his vision turned fuzzy again and the medicine started to kick in.

His alpha continued to nuzzle his mark and run his hands up and down Wooyoung's side. It instantly relaxed him and he let out a long sigh.

"That's it. Take a deep breath. Don't leave me." San muttered, leaving possessive kisses along Wooyoung's neck.

"San... What's wrong with me..." He whispered, turning to he could curl up in his alpha's arms.

"I've told you. The cure you took affected you in unexpected ways. It's trying to reject the pregnancy."

"Then why am I seeing visions?"

San tensed. "Visions?"

Wooyoung could feel himself slipping into sleep as he nuzzled into San's chest. "Of two soot wolves and a large black alpha... and two girls..."

"These are just delusions from the pregnancy. Go to sleep Wooyoung. You need to rest. Think of the baby." San whispered.

Wooyoung nodded slowly and let himself succumb to sleep.

.

.

.

.

As soon as Wooyoung was asleep the alpha slipped out of the bed and had to work to control himself as he marched from the room.

" **What just happened?** " He shouted at the omegas standing outside the door.

They were always there observing and studying Wooyoung so they could make adjustments to whatever shit it was they were putting in his body.

He didn't really care. He just enjoying getting to fuck the omega's brains out. He had forgotten how good it felt to be buried hilt deep in Wooyoung's tight ass.

"I don't know. There must have been something that triggered him." Lionel muttered as he rubbed his chin.

" **No shit!** "

The omegas both flinched and turned away from him.

This pack was so weird having an omega in charge. It made the other omega's unruly and defiant. He didn't like it, but he would tolerate it as long as they helped him.

" **You better fix it!** "

"We are doing our best. Mind control isn't precise. If something triggered him then it could have been something he saw or..." Lionel turned to Jacobi. "They were just brought a report about the Hunters. Wasn't his pack... Didn't they have some kind of alliance with them?"

Both omegas turned to the alpha in front of them. "Do you know, Caius?"

It was strange to hear his real name after being called San for so long...

"Yes. And he said he remembered seeing Alistar."

Lionel gasped and covered his mouth. "That's it then. Until I can tweak the medicine, we need to avoid anything that could trigger past memories. We are already pushing the limit by having you involved." The older omega sighed as Caius fought to hold back his wolf. "But to some extent I suppose it could be helping us. The fact that you have the same scent as your brother, and he can feel comforted in having his 'mate' around, that lulls him into an off guard state of mind. It's probably what's allowed us to keep control over him."

"Why is he even so important to you?" Caius leaned against the wall. "I know why _I'm_ doing this. But why are you?"

"Because an omega has always ruled our pack. There's an ancient magic that is invoked when an omega of ancient blood sits on the throne. Our crops grow better, the wild deer and elk in the area are healthier, and so is our pack for that matter." Lionel said, a sad tone entering his voice. "We were suffering under Reese and his rule." He glanced at Jacobi and they both nodded.

"Ultima needs his bloodline on the throne, otherwise we will cease to exist."

Caius snorted. "So you discovered the connection with me, used me to kidnap him after drugging him, and will continue to drug him for as long as you can get away with it just to keep the pack going."

The omegas looked guilty for only a second, but then both nodded. "We can sacrifice one life for the good of hundreds. Once that pup is born we will train him or her to rule the right way. Unfortunately Wooyoung may always have to be drugged... But it will be an honorable sacrifice in the end."

"And when his pack comes to save them, which I guarantee they will come, you know my rule, right?" Caius stood up straight. " **My brother is mine.** "


	22. 21

Yeosang was the next one to be taken for interrogation. Hongjoong's voice filled his head over and over and he could feel his alpha's panic through their bond.

He did his best to stay calm and alert as he was led down a hall with his hands tied behind his back.

Once inside a new room, his eyes were drawn to Jongho immediately.

He was chained to the wall with several lashes across his torso and arms and his head hung limp.

_Jongho is here. It's bad Joongie..._ Yeosang sent to his alpha privately. He wanted to avoid Yunho hearing it just in case he woke up.

He noticed other hunters standing around the room with long poles that had metal loops on the end. He passed everything he saw on to Hongjoong so he could prepare the others before he was forced to sit in a chair.

The Hunters tied him to it and the new Colonel stood in front of him. "Here's how this is going to work. You're going to answer my questions. As long as you do, I won't hurt you, or him anymore." He said, jerking a thumb over his shoulder.

Yeosang just stared at him and kept his head high.

"What rank are you?"

"Beta." Yeosang answered when he saw a woman raise the whip. "I'm a beta."

"And that's essentially like a middle class, right?" The man asked, taking notes on a large pad.

"No."

The Hunter glanced up at him and clenched his jaw. "Do elaborate."

"I wouldn't consider it a middle class. There is no upper, middle, and lower class. We don't use labels like that." Yeosang did the best he could to keep his anger and judgement out of his voice.

He watched as the Colonel nodded a few times and seemed to think about what he wanted to ask next.

"So what does it mean to be a beta?"

Yeosang felt his wolf start to stir in defiance. These were private questions that didn't concern a Hunter. "I don't understand the question." He said, trying to buy himself more time.

"If there is no class, as you pointed out, what is a beta's job? What do you contribute? What is your role?"

The man sensed Yeosang's hesitation and motioned to the Hunter with the whip. She raised it again and waited for the signal.

"Beta's are more of an all around rank." Yeosang said, bowing his head a little. "We tend to be a little better at hunting and fighting than omegas and we support alphas on big trips."

"Tend to?"

"Yes, tend to." Yeosang snapped. "Something you fail to realize that I had to enlighten your grandfather on too is that we aren't all that different from you. Some of us don't always fit in in our ranks. Some are stronger, some are weaker. Just like humans. It's all about how our body matures. Just like humans. We have families, children, love, hate, and friendship. Just like humans. For you to single us out because we are different would be like one of these other fools saying they won't follow you're lead because you aren't as strong as they are. Or your slower, or can't think as fast. Or because you aren't as good of a man as your grandfather. I know for sure that last one is true." Yeosang felt himself bristling as he spoke.

The Colonel's eyes narrowed. "You've got spunk, I'll give you that. But you better watch yourself." He said coldly. "Get him on the table."

Several Hunters removed Yeosang from the chair and proceeded to chain him to a large table spread eagle.

The beta tested the chains for only a moment before resigning to the fact that they knew how to do their job.

He worked on staying calm as he was poked and prodded in every area possible. Every area. It's like they thought he was some sort of alien, not a creature that can change between a human and a wolf.

"So which one is your mate?" The Colonel asked as someone worked on inserting something cold and hard enough into Yeosang that he let out a little whimper. "I know it's not this one, we took care of his mate already."

_Sangie..._ Hongjoong said, reacting to how uncomfortable his beta was right now.

_I'm f-fine._ He whimpered again when the device was pulled out of him and placed in a bag.

"I'm waiting." The Colonel snapped.

"The head alpha. Our leader." He answered, closing his eyes.

Then he felt fingers brushing across his sides and he tried to pull away. "What are these from?"

Yeosang froze when he realized the man was talking about his stretch marks. "I've a-always had them." He said quickly, trying to pull away from the touch again.

"Funny, because these almost look like..." The man paused.

_Sangie stay calm._

_Joong... He's going to find out..._ Yeosang said, feeling his heart racing.

The Colonel went over to Jongho and lifted his head up by squeezing his jaw. "What are the other ranks? TELL ME!" He stepped out of the way so the woman with the whip could make her move, opening up two more places on Jongho's chest.

He cried out in pain and pulled against the chains, then hung limp.

Yeosang could hear him muttering weakly. It hurt his heart know that Jongho was broken enough to give into the man's demands. But whatever they had done to Yunho must be very severe...

A moment later, Seonghwa was brought in, head held high with pride. He looked in Yeosang's direction and his eyes flashed gold in anger, but the beta shook his head to get him to calm down.

"You're an omega, yes?" The new Colonel asked, running his hands over Seonghwa's side.

"So what if I am?"

"Strap him down." The man ordered.

Seonghwa was dragged to another table in the room and chained down like Yeosang. They found each other's eyes quickly. Then the older winced when the Hunter's started examining him too.

"Sir?" One said as he removed a device from inside Seonghwa.

The Colonel walked over and ran his gloved finger over it.

The device was covered in Seonghwa's slick...

"What is this? Are you sick?" He turned, studying the omega.

Seonghwa opened his mouth to answer, but Jongho beat him to it. "Yes." He forced out. His shoulders were shaking from having to support his weight. "N-Nothing you have to worry about. It only affects our kind."

_Jongho what are you doing?_ Yeosang asked, watching as Jongho started to pant from exhaustion.

He didn't answer.

Seonghwa hissed as the device was forced back in him.

"I would be inclined to believe you, but there is a particular rumor going around that I would like to have confirmed." The man said as he walked over to Jongho. "And you're going to tell me, or I'll beat you until you die. Then there will be no one to protect that broken boy that screamed himself to sleep."

Jongho's head snapped up and his eyes were red for a second, but he quickly gave in and bowed his head once more.

"Good boy." The Colonel sneered as he ruffled Jongho's hair like a dog.

Seonghwa snarled on the table next to him and pulled at his restraints.

"Now this rumor... The men say that your race has the ability to 'breed' with each other, no matter the gender. Is this true?" He looked at all three of them in turn.

Then he leaned forward and lifted Jongho's head up again. The alpha hissed in pain and kept his eyes closed.

"Well?"

No one wanted to give him an answer.

Getting frustrated, the man grabbed the whip from the woman next to him and snapped his hand forward with what looked like as much force as he could muster.

Jongho screamed and arched his back away from the wall. The Colonel shouted at him several times to tell him the answer.

Yeosang flinched each time. He felt Hongjoong's stress through their link. No one knew what to do...

"Colonel!" Another woman entered the room, her eyes wide as she stared a a piece of paper in her hands.

"What?!" He rounded on her. She just handed him the paper and his mouth opened a little. He stood there for a long moment, even getting a little pale, before he turned back to Jongho. "One more chance."

"Yes." Jongho whimpered. "It's true..."

Several of the Hunter's in the room flinched.

Yeosang found it odd, they should know this... Unless all the men who worked under Colonel Gregson had left the Hunters, or had something else happen to them.

"What happened to the men who used to work for your grandfather?" He asked, trying to keep his voice strong.

The new Colonel turned around and gave Yeosang a cold look. "Why does it matter?"

"Because you act as if you know nothing about us. They experienced this already. They know what to expect. Talk to them. They were accepting of us. Your grandfather would never stand for this treatment!"

_Yeosang don't push it._ Hongjoong warned.

The Hunter's in the room all laughed.

Yeosang felt his mouth open a little as they all exchanged a knowing look. "So foolish." The Colonel laughed as he started to wind up the whip. Jongho's blood dripped into the floor as the tip wiggled back and forth. "Here's the thing. When I took over, all those idiots loyal to my grandfather tried to stop me. They didn't want to back track and take away from the 'peace' he had started. But that is not the vision I saw. So they had the choice to leave and go back to their families and swear to never be involved with us again, or they didn't get to leave at all, if you get what I mean." He sneered.

"You're a monster!" Seonghwa shouted, lifting his head off the table.

"No! I am not the monster! I am the person who will save this world from your vile species!" He roared, marching over to Seonghwa. "You are a plague that will destroy everything if we let you get out of hand. Cities down south have already been attacked and people are dying!"

"But that's not us." Yeosang said. "We haven't been around humans since the last time we worked with your grandfather. And they helped us fight a pack that was harming everyone around here. That's the deal we made with him to begin with. He helped us protect our family while getting to destroy the wolves that were the real enemy. And in doing so we became friends."

"I WILL NOT BEFRIEND FILTH LIKE YOU." He spun around and back handed Yeosang, making his face slam into the table.

"Please..." A weak cry came from the other side of the room. Jongho lifted his head up slowly and peered at the man through hooded eyelids. "I'll do anything... Anything you want. Please, just don't hurt them anymore." He pleaded.

The Colonel sneered at him. "I may consider it. But I need to be satisfied with your loyalty before I decide anything, Mutt."

_Jongho don't be a fool!_ Hongjoong called out through the link.

_It's not foolish to protect your loved ones. Please don't fight them. Don't do anything to upset them. You need to get out of here and find Wooyoung, and warn the others back home of this new threat..._ Jongho answered.

"I'll do anything." He repeated to the Colonel. "Just tend to their wounds, feed them, take care of them so they stay healthy. I'll do anything and tell you anything."

The man walked forward. "One condition. I still get to study them." Jongho started to protest, but he held up a hand to stop him. "There will be no harm done, as long as the cooperate as well. Just scans and vitals is all. Especially on that one." He pointed at Seonghwa.

The air grew thick and Seonghwa paled. They all knew what he meant.

" **If you do one thing to harm my baby I will not hesitate to rip your throat out.** " Seonghwa snarled, his eyes turning gold.

Several of the Hunters stepped closer to aim their weapons at him, but the Colonel held up his hand.

_Seonghwa calm down_. Mingi said, although his voice was shaking with rage.

"What just happened there?" The Colonel asked, turning to Jongho.

The alpha sighed, then took a deep breath. "Sometimes when our wolf comes forward, it takes control. That's what happens when our eyes change color."

_Jongho, don't do this. Fight him!_ Hongjoong called out.

_I promise I won't give away too many of our secrets... But I need to protect you_. _Please protect each other. And bring Wooyoung home._ The youngest alpha sounded so tired.

Another feeling of sorrow, hurt, and acceptance came through the link, and Yeosang had a feeling it might have been San even though he hadn't spoken once.

_Tell Yunho I love him, and I'm sorry._ Jongho said weakly.

Yeosang heard everyone calling out through the link at the same time, but then a piece of them vanished.

Jongho had switched off the pack link.

"Just vitals and scans." He said.

The Colonel eyed him for a long moment, then released the chains.

Jongho fell in a heap on the floor and whimpered in pain. But he gritted his teeth and pushed himself up so he used the wall to support himself.

"You've got guts Mutt, I'll give you that. I did inherit one thing from my grandfather. I am a man of honor." He held out his hand. "I give you my word that I will care for the others, give them food and water, and treat their wounds and bring no harm to them in anyway. I will still get to perform scans and take their vitals for as long as I may need, in exchange for your loyalty. You will do as I say, when I say, and how I say, and give me any information I want."

Everyone in the link kept begging for Jongho not to do it, but Yeosang knew he couldn't hear them.

The alpha closed is eyes for a long moment, then shook the man's hand.

The Colonel spun around, "You heard me! Get these two back to their cells and bring them things to make them comfortable. Tend to any wounds they may have. And take him to my quarters and get him bandaged up."

Everyone in the room rushed to follow their leader's orders.

Yeosang watched as Jongho was helped from the room by two Hunters. He had only seen the alpha look this small and broken a handful of times. When Yunho was wounded at Ultima and when Wooyoung was taking the cure.

But this time had to be the worst...

He was sacrificing everything he loved in order to protect his pack.

The sign of a true alpha.


	23. 22

The Hunters were true to the promise that had been made to Jongho.

Each member of the pack was given food and water immediately.

Seonghwa was asked if there was anything particular he needed for his pregnancy.

All of them were brought beds, pillows, and blankets.

But they were kept in their cells, and they were kept separate from each other.

While Mingi was terrified for Seonghwa right now, he started to worry about Yunho more and more. He would ask the Hunters about him constantly but he would never get an answer.

The beta had yet to awaken after the screaming from earlier.

The pack spent hours talking about what they could do, but none of them had an answer. They weren't willing to leave Jongho, even if he had asked them to. And with Yunho wounded, they wouldn't be able to easily transport him either.

San especially was no help.

It was like he was starting to shut down...

The others would occasionally feel his pain through the link, but most of the time he just felt empty. And no matter how hard they tried, they couldn't get him to talk about it either.

The Hunters would even make comments to each other about how he wasn't eating and they would have to start force feeding him soon.

The outcome for the pack started to look bleak as time began to pass...

—

Seonghwa sat quietly in the chair while he waited for the rest of the Hunters to come in the room.

It was time for his daily exam, and as the days passed by, the exams got longer.

He had hit about the two month mark recently, so they were able to start taking scans of the baby and monitor them through their machines.

They were fascinated, and disgusted, by the fact that a man could get pregnant, and spent a long time taking internal scans while writing everything down.

Mingi would coach him through the entire exam, helping him to stay calm and not do anything to set the Hunters off.

It was hard to say what would set them off and make them break the deal they had made with Jongho.

Seonghwa sighed and placed a hand over his stomach. He hated that he wasn't home for this pregnancy... But more than anything else, he hated that he couldn't be home with Avayla.

She was going through her first pregnancy without him, and it broke his heart.

_Take a deep breath, precious._ Mingi said gently. Seonghwa could hear the pain in his voice as he spoke, but he was trying to be strong for both of them. _There's no point in stressing over something we can't change._

_I know. But our baby is alone right now. She shouldn't have to go through her first pregnancy alone. It would be different if Maria was there... Bu-_

_But nothing, Hwa._ Mingi interrupted, adopting a slightly stern tone. _She's a smart girl. She's watched you and the others go through pregnancy. Plus she has Theo to help her through it. And the other packs. Avayla is not alone right now. And she will get through it just fine, because she's stubborn like her mother, so she's not going to give up without a fight._

Seonghwa sniffed as his lip started to tremble. He knew his alpha was right. Their daughter was strong.

The door opened and Seonghwa watched the Hunters get everything set up, then dutifully lifted his shirt.

—

Yunho hardly left the bed they had given him once he finally woke up. The pain was still excruciating.

Whatever those loops were, the electricity coming from them had set off something within him that destroyed whatever healing had been done...

He was afraid all the scar tissue had been disintegrated.

The pack had accepted that he would always have back pain after facing Lance, but Yunho had hoped the worst of it was far behind him.

He wanted to rip the Hunters apart for doing this to him, but even if Jongho hadn't made that deal, he wouldn't be able to shift.

Jongho...

He was so mad at his alpha for sacrificing himself like this.

No one had heard from Jongho since he had made the deal.

Hunters would come in twice a day to rub a pain medication into his back. Yunho would fight them on it if it didn't help him so much, but he found himself looking forward to the visits. The medicine was so powerful it usually knocked him out to.

The more time he could sleep, the less time he could spend worrying about Jongho and the rest of the pack...

It hadn't escaped his notice that San had distanced himself. He wished he could be with the alpha to try and comfort him.

Both of them feared for Wooyoung, and now Jongho.

His thoughts would also stray to Theo. He knew his son would be ok, especially with Avayla there to take care of him.

But he hated how they had had to say goodbye...

Yunho took a deep breath, groaning a little as the Hunter in his room worked the medication into his back before setting up a machine to scan him.

The thing that impressed him was that Colonel Gregson's grandson really did uphold his promise.

The Hunters took scans of his back fairly often as they tried to research what they could do to help him more. A few spoke of surgery, but the idea of his enemy working on his back terrified him, even if they were proving trustworthy so far.

If they were treating him this well, he prayed that Jongho was receiving the same treatment.

He missed his mate so much.

—

Wooyoung smiled down at his stomach while slowly rubbing circles on it. "How are you doing today, baby? Will today be the day you tell me what you are?"

He chuckled when he felt the baby move, almost like it was nuzzling against his hand.

The door to the bedroom opened and his advisors came filing in to go over the daily reports.

He had been ordered by a doctor to stay on bed rest because of how hard this pregnancy had been on him. They didn't want to risk loosing their leader or his heir.

Someone was constantly with him to make sure they kept up his medication, which they had upped the dose on.

It seemed to be working though. Wooyoung had stopped having visions and was able to sleep through the night.

Although he still had dreams of two soot wolves and two little girls.

He didn't bring it up to San again though. The alpha grew visibly upset whenever he brought up these dreams and told him that they weren't important and that he had a real baby on the way that he needed to focus on.

His advisors started going over the supplies in inventory as well as what they thought was needed.

"We are going to need to hunt again soon." Lionel looked concerned. "We are running our own herds down to the bare minimum, they aren't going to be able to hold up much longer. We need to hunt wild game."

"But what about the Hunters? Are they still in the area?" Wooyoung looked up from his stomach.

"It is unconfirmed, but we haven't seen sightings of them for a couple of days now." Jacobi looked at the other omega and they both sighed. "We can organize a larger party and have them scout at the same time to make sure our borders are safe."

The door opened before Wooyoung could respond and San came walking over to him. "How are you feeling?" He asked, sitting on the side of the bed.

Wooyoung gave him a soft smile. "I'm fine."

The alpha nodded and turned to the others. "Did I hear you mention a hunting party?"

They nodded to him and turned back to Wooyoung, waiting for his answer.

The head omega rubbed his belly for a moment longer, then nodded with a wave of his hand. "Do it. We can't let everyone starve. Make sure we don't use any of our animals for now, and maybe organize a party to see if we can catch some wild ones too to try and build our numbers. If the Hunters are gone, then we can start stocking up a bit. Do we need to go to a human city for any supplies?"

"No." Lionel said, a proud smile crossing his face. "With your innovations and ideas on how to run this place better, we shouldn't need to go for another few weeks. You've really made it so we can be more self sufficient, Sire."

Wooyoung felt his chest swell at the thought of helping his people. That's all he wanted to do. Be a good leader to them. "Then see that the hunt is done as soon as possible. And I only want our strongest alphas patrolling at night for now. Just in case."

Jacobi and Lionel both bowed with bright smiles before leaving the room.

San leaned over and nuzzled the mark on Wooyoung's neck, sending a chill down his spine. "You've made them so happy. I'm proud of you."

Once again Wooyoung felt his chest swell. He may be the leader of an entire pack, but he still loved it when his alpha praised him.

"How's the little one doing today?" San asked, placing a hand on Wooyoung's stomach.

The omega suddenly cried out in pain as it felt like his baby moved to the other side of his stomach.

San withdrew his hand immediately and held it up in the air. A dark look crossed his face before it quickly changed to concern. "Are you ok? What just happened?"

"I don't know. He's been fine up until you touched him..." Wooyoung's head snapped up. "Him. It's a boy." He covered his mouth as his heart started to race. "Sannie, we are having a boy!"

San beamed at him and leaned over to give him a kiss. "A boy." He sighed, kissing Wooyoung's cheeks over and over.

Wooyoung hummed, closing his eyes and smiling, loving the attention he was getting from his alpha.

They were having a boy. A beautiful baby boy to carry on the Ultima line.

—

Jongho's breathing was labored as he shifted yet again into his human form.

For weeks now he had been ordered to shift back and forth under all sorts of extreme circumstances while the new Colonel and his team studied him.

Now it was shifting in the water. They had set up a pool for him to swim in.

Once his leg was healed, all the physical challenges began.

Today was swimming, earlier in the week that had him running laps, one week they took him hiking up a mountain.

Jongho's was exhausted...

He continued to tread water as best he could while trying to keep his eyes open.

"Good." The Colonel said, coming to crouch by the waters edge.

The alpha eyes him nervously, waiting to find out what the next challenge will be.

"You're stamina is outstanding. No wonder you survive so well out in these harsh conditions. And it appears that you have good control over your... Your wolf as you call it."

Jongho nodded. He wasn't allowed to speak unless he was asked a direct question.

"What else can set of your wolf?"

"Emotions. Mostly anger."

"Give me an example." The man ordered.

Jongho took a deep breath as he kept treading water. He knew this was another test to see how long he could do it. He slowed down his legs to make long, graceful sweeps to try and conserve energy. "The biggest one is if our mate, or a member of our pack, is threatened. Our wolf will sense it and want to come forward to protect them."

The Colonel rubbed his chin. "So basically what your... Mate..." He sighed in disgust before continuing. "What he did the first day you were here."

"Yes. Our first instinct is to protect our mates from harm. Alphas have a stronger urge than betas or omegas."

"Why is that?"

"It's just how our nature is. Just like for humans some people are kinder than others, or don't anger as easily. I keep trying to tell you that we are very similar to humans."

"I don't care about that, Mutt! I just want to know how you tick. You're not going to sway me like you did my pathetic grandfather!" The Colonel shouted, reaching out his arm and backhanding Jongho.

The alpha whimpered and lost his momentum, slipping below the surface of the water.

His wolf begged to be set free, to rip the man to shreds, to taste his blood...

But Jongho knew he couldn't do that.

There were too many Hunters and one wrong move could mean death for the others.

He coughed up water as he broke the surface and his arms flailed as he tried to swim to the edge. But as was the Colonel's way, as soon as he tried to touch the edge, his hand was poked with an electric cattle prod.

The alpha cried out and slipped before the surface again, the water making the electric shock much worse than normal.

For a moment, he debated letting himself just sink and drowning.

His wolf snapped at him and surged forward just enough to help him get back to the surface.

He gasped for air and coughed up more water before wiping the water from his eyes.

The Hunters were gathered in the corner again, huddled around a computer and whispering amongst themselves. Leaving Jongho to continue treading water until he was given another command.


	24. 23

Hongjoong growled as he was ordered to take another lap around the track. The monitors tapped over his heart and lungs started to irritate his skin as the Hunters forced him to keep going.

He had no idea how long he had been running for, but it was starting to piss him off.

That's all he did anymore. He and the rest of his pack had turned into glorified science experiments.

Seonghwa had told him they were constantly running tests on him and the baby, nothing harmful, but it was like they wanted to monitor every step of the pregnancy.

They had even started running scans on Yeosang too. That set Hongjoong's wolf off and he ended up being sedated one night because he couldn't keep it under control.

But they were still being treated well, so the Hunters were keeping their promise to Jongho.

Which scared him, because he had no idea what they were putting the young alpha through.

"Alright, shift." A voice came over the speaker.

Hongjoong sighed and shifted in midair, shredding the shorts he was wearing and continued running around the track. 

His pants seemed to echo in the room as he lengthened his strides and flew in circles around the room.

.

.

.

.

Mingi glared at the Hunters in the corner as he shifted once again. They had been recording the process every time and he knew they would be studying the footage later.

He had tried to smash one of the cameras, but he was put to a stop quickly when they mentioned Seonghwa was being tested in another room.

The low-life's needed to be taught a lesson.

But with the tight grip they had on everyone, Mingi couldn't risk losing control. There were too many guns on them all the time, and he needed to think of his mate and future pup.

He sat down and eyes the Hunters as they started entering things into the computer.

Then one walked over and started measuring Mingi's body.

He was ordered to stand, sit, stretch, hold his tail straight, bare his teeth, and hold up his paws.

At the end of it all he growled at the Hunter next to him and flicked him in the face with his tail, indicating he was done.

The man grunted and walked away, but didn't fight it.

"You may shift again." Another one said.

Mingi did, and pulled his shorts on from where they were sitting off to the side. Then he let the Hunter lead him back to his tiny cell.

.

.

.

.

San lay curled up in his bed with his back to the door. His eyes stayed closed and he worked on keeping long, but shallow breaths.

It's the only thing that kept him sane right now.

He felt like his life force was slowly draining out of him.

Caius had kept San's mating mark for whatever reason, and that meant he could feel his connection with Wooyoung.

His Soulmate bond made it even worse...

San had never said anything to the others, but he could feel every time Caius slept with Wooyoung. He could feel the omega's joy, pleasure, hesitation, need... Everything...

And he could feel that Wooyoung did it willingly.

Whatever they had done, he was worried when... If... They were reunited, the omega wouldn't be his Wooyoung anymore.

Each time broke San down a little more.

Now he felt like he was nothing more than a shell with a thin string that attached him to his Soulmate.

Wooyoung... a small whine escaped him as he exhaled again.

He missed his mate so much.

If Soulmates were separated for too long did their bond start to disappear?

_San?_ Yeosang's voice entered his mind.

The alpha was too weak to try and block him out, but he also didn't feel like answering.

_Sannie you need to talk to us._ The beta said gently.

He sounded tired, but San knew he had just returned from his round of testing. How long had they even been here? He had such a hard time keeping track of time when all he did was stare at the wall or go into the other room with the Hunters.

_You can't give up. Wooyoung wouldn't want you to give up._ Yeosang sent his concern over the link.

But all San could do was flinch at the sound of his mate's name.

_San, talk to us._ Hongjoong added, also sounding exhausted. _Please don't make me force you._

_Why?_ San said, trying not to sound too rude.

_Because we love you San. I know it's hard, but don't shut us out._ Hongjoong kept his tone gentle. _We need to stay strong for each other._

San rolled his eyes and turned onto his back. _How has staying strong helped us? We haven't seen each other in weeks! How long have we even been in this fucking hell hole? Do any of you even know?! NO! We are nothing but experiments now! Playthings for these damn Hunters who don't give a shit if we live or die, just as long as they get data from us! How long do you think it'll be before they start trying to breed us? Force us fuck in front of them so they can learn about how we are during that time? And there's no saying they are going to keep you mated pairs together! Are you ready for me to fuck Yeosang??_

Silence followed his little rant.

_Welcome back my friend._ Yunho's weak voice entered his head. _It's so good to hear your voice again._

San's heart shattered and he sat up to stare at the other wall. Yunho was laying on the other side still waiting for his back to heal. _Yunho..._

_I get it. You're mad. I am too. But Hongjoong is right._ The beta said.

_Yunho you need to be resting._ Their head alpha forced his concern into the link and there was just a hint of a command in his voice.

_That's all I'm doing, Joong. Trust me. I don't have much of a choice right now._ San could hear the eye roll in Yunho's voice.

_Have the doctor's said anything?_ Seonghwa asked.

It was silent again as they all waited for an answer from their friend. San could feel his pain and wanted nothing more than to go comfort his friend.

Now that the other's had broken him out of his funk, he remembered that he wasn't the only one suffering right now.

How could he be so selfish...?

_They seem optimistic. And I think my back may be healing since I'm not using it much. But they destroyed it. Whatever they did..._ Yunho sounded just as broken as he must feel right now.

All that time, all that therapy, all that pain... It was all for nothing now. Lance had come back to haunt them from the grave.

San let out a harsh sigh and ran a hand through his hair. _Hongjoong. We need to figure out how to get out of here. There has to be something we can do._

_I agree._ The older said. _They still don't know about our link. We can coordinate. Start watching everything and report. There has to be a weakness somewhere. And we need to figure out how to get to Jongho._

A chorus of agreement came from the rest of them.

_Help me stay strong too. Don't let me lose my way._ San asked, his voice shaking a little. _I haven't told you yet because I didn't want to worry you... But I can feel everything._

_What do you mean?_ Yunho asked, although San could tell he already knew what he was referring to.

_Whatever they did to Wooyoung... He is happy right now. But they haven't taken away my mark, so I know my brother wants me to suffer. But I know whenever they... Every time. So I need you to help me stay strong so we can get out of here and rescue him. Please._

His pack had a hard time masking their anger at this news. It wasn't directed toward San, but at what had happened to Wooyoung. He could feel it rising.

Then Hongjoong spoke up, his head alpha tone coming out. _We figure out how to get to Jongho and we get out._

.

.

.

.

"Alright, Mutt. I'm going to ask you some questions, and you're going to answer them. Got it?" The Colonel said as he sat across from Jongho.

The alpha nodded slowly and kept his eyes on the table.

They were testing his stamina in another way now.

He hadn't had a full meal for three days now and he felt so weak.

"You are a pack of seven?"

"Yes." Jongho said, doing his best to keep his voice even. He was determined to not give up more information than he had to.

"Are there other packs around you? Other allies?"

"Yes." There was no avoiding that one. It was common knowledge among the Hunters that there were other wolves out there.

"How many?"

Jongho signed. "I don't know. Not everyone settles into an area like we have. Some like to travel and only stay in one place for a short time."

"What's the biggest pack in this area, yours?" The Colonel leaned forward.

So that was his angle. Jongho's wolf perked up and they instantly agreed on the same thing. "I don't know their numbers. But deep in the mountains there is a pack named Ultima. They have been there for hundreds of years. It's basically an entire city."

The pencil the man had been playing with snapped in half. "What?" He growled.

Jongho knew he needed to be careful now, but maybe he could get the man to go and attack Ultima. It would be a way to try and get him over there so he could see about getting Wooyoung out. "I don't know. I've only been there once. There are probably hundreds of wolves behind the walls there."

"Where is it?"

Jongho fought the smile that threatened to keep over his face. He was slowly turning the tide.

This could work.

.

.

.

.

"Alright, you're baby is looking very healthy." The elderly midwife said as he withdrew his hands. "And at almost seven months you seem to be doing well."

Wooyoung hummed and rubbed his hands over his stomach. "I feel good. I'm definitely ready for him to be here though."

The old omega chuckled and nodded. "I'm sure you are. Have you thought of a name yet?"

The door to the room opened and San came striding in. His eyes narrowed in on Wooyoung and they had a hungry glint to them.

"No." Wooyoung said, his eyes never leaving his alpha. "But we have time. Nothing quite sounds right."

"You're right, you have time. I'll see you tomorrow." The omega bowed and shuffled out of the room.

San watched him go, then moved to sit next to Wooyoung on the bed. "How are you feeling today?" He asked, placing a hand on Wooyoung's shoulder and brushing his thumb over his neck.

"Ok. I'm tired, but also feeling restless at the same time. I'm tired of being stuck in bed." Wooyoung stuck his lip out in a little pout as he eyed his alpha.

The older chuckled and handed Wooyoung his next dose of medicine. "Just a couple more months. And then we will have a healthy baby boy. Have you really not thought of a name yet?"

Wooyoung swallowed the green liquid and smacked his lips. He blinked a couple of times as his vision blurred for a moment. "There's one bouncing around in my head, but every time I think of it, it slips away."

San crawled up on the bed and licked his lips. "Maybe I can help you get your mind off things? I miss your delicious body."

The omega's wolf stirred at the idea and he bit his lip. "What did you have in mind?"

"Just lay back and relax. **Let Alpha do his job.** " San purred as he pulled down the blankets and then Wooyoung's pants and boxers. " **Just don't hide that pretty voice of yours.** "

Wooyoung nodded and then gasped when San took his length in his hands and started to stroke him. The whimpers came out of instinct and he could feel his alpha's pleasure. He always expressed his love for how vocal Wooyoung could be.

The omega closed his eyes as San continued to stroke him, using his hand to rub the outside of his leg.

But one thing made it so that Wooyoung couldn't fully enjoy this moment, even when San took him into his mouth and made him cry out in pleasure.

Whenever San got too close to his stomach, their baby boy would move away from him.


	25. 24

San glanced at the door when it opened. By now the appearance of several Hunters didn't phase him anymore. They visited him so frequently and led him from his room, it had become habit to stand as soon as the door opened.

He sighed and let them take him to his next test, and he nearly sighed with relief when they brought him into their exam room.

It was just a vital testing day.

That was the easiest thing they could have him do and he was actually thankful. San didn't know if he could handle anything else. There had been a nagging feeling in the back of his mind that something was about to happen, and it was starting to eat at him.

All of them had been looking for ways to get out of here. They watched everything, the guards and their shifts, the layouts of the rooms, how many came to bring them food.

But there was always too many for one wolf to take out on their own.

The gun that popped out from the ceiling right outside their door posed the biggest threat. It had pinpoint accuracy and the dart of wolfsbane it shot would put one of them out for several hours.

They were no closer to escaping than the day they arrived.

No one in the pack had been given an exact indication as to how much time had passed. They only had a rough idea because they could track it through Seonghwa's pregnancy.

The omega thought he may be about five months pregnant, which also meant he knew the gender of the baby. He had decided not to tell anyone though because he didn't want to do it through mind link.

San was grateful for this. He so desperately wanted to know if he was having a boy or a girl... And he should have known a long time ago.

He tried so hard to stay out of the holes he liked to dig himself, but when he started thinking about his unborn baby, and the possibility that they may never meet...

The battle was lost quickly.

Caius was going to claim his child as his own.

Just like he would probably claim Wooyoung once he realized San wasn't coming.

And the twins...

San whimpered and turned his head to the side as a few tears slowly ran down his cheeks. He could sense the Hunters pausing to look at him, but he didn't care.

He managed to get himself under control as the testing began. They always extracted blood and checked his heart and lungs.

A Hunter bent over him and placed his listening device right over San's heart to listen.

At the same exact time, searing pain shot through his body and San screamed.

It was loud and very high pitched as he started to shake on the exam table.

_San!_

_San what's going on?!_

_Sannie!!_

Voices filled his head as his pack sent their concern, but San couldn't focus on them or even pick out who was speaking.

All he saw was white.

Something was happening to Wooyoung.

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.

Wooyoung stood by the table in his room folding laundry. He had to order their staff to leave it alone so he could do it, which he now felt bad about, but he was in desperate need of something to do.

Baby was due any day now and Wooyoung was feeling restless.

He still had yet to pick a name. Nothing felt right.

And the biggest problem he was happening was the fact that San couldn't share in the pregnancy with him. It was like his baby was rejecting his own father. The thought terrified Wooyoung and he didn't know what to do about it.

His advisors kept telling him that it could happen. Sometimes pups became overly attached to one parent, usually the mom, until the other parent did something to earn the pup's trust and love.

That answer didn't sit right with Wooyoung, and when he tried to ask San about it, the alpha grew irate and stormed out of the room.

Sighing, Wooyoung folded a shirt and set it off to the side before bringing his hands back to his stomach. "Well, Baby, it would be nice if you came so I could return to my normal duties. Mama is going to be in trouble as soon as Daddy realizes he's out of bed." He chuckled when he felt his son kicking inside him and reached for another shirt.

"What on earth are you doing?!" San's voice came from the far side of the room.

"Here we go." The omega muttered as he continued to fold.

"You are supposed to be in bed!" San was by his side in an instant trying to tug him away from the table.

Wooyoung withdrew his arm and glared at his alpha. "Stop, San! I needed to get up and stretch my legs. I think I'm allowed to do that!"

San's eyes narrowed and a low growl came from his throat. "Excuse me?"

"I'm not doing much right now, San. I'm literally standing here folding laundry. You've kept me in bed for about 6 months now, I just wanted to stand for a bit."

" **Get back in bed now.** " San's eyes flashed red as he pointed in that direction.

"No. Not until I'm finished." Wooyoung snapped, then his face fell. "Please San?"

"You know what the doctor said! Don't make me actually order you..."

Wooyoung knew he was testing his limits, but he was the leader of Ultima. If anything, he should be the one ordering San around. So he shook his head, "I will soon. I promise."

He started to turn back around again, but San grabbed his wrist and snarled at him, his eyes a deep red now. " **BED. NOW.** "

His order was so strong that Wooyoung instantly bared his neck to him and fell to his knees, whimpering as he submitted to his alpha.

The force of the order did something else too that made his jaw drop.

Pain suddenly shot through his abdomen seconds after his water broke, wetting the carpet below him, and he fell forward, barely catching himself on his hands.

He pulled one up to cup his stomach and whimpered as a contraction wracked his body.

San's order had forced him into labor.

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.

.

.

The alpha screamed and pulled against his restraints as he twisted in pain.

He couldn't tell if it was physical or mental pain, he just knew that every thing hurt.

"What is happening right now?"

_San talk to us!_

"What did you stick him with?!"

_Please, San what did they do?!_

He screamed again, even louder this time, and started to pull away from the table.

"Sir, the other's are freaking out too. They keep pounding on the door."

San's wolf howled within him, wanting to break free and go find his mate. He needed to protect Wooyoung from whatever was hurting him.

Caius had to be torturing him. That was the only thing that would make sense.

The pain died down for a few minutes, giving San a chance to breath.

His chest rose and fell quickly as he panted, rocking his head back and forth.

"What was that?"

"I don't know..."

About ten minutes later, he started to scream again. The pain... Nothing compared to it. Why was this happening?

_San, please!_

_Sannie what are they doing to you. Please answer us!_

"NO!" San screamed, trying to clutch at his stomach.

"Sedate him!"

A Hunter tried to get close to him and San lunged as far as the restraints would allow, snapping his jaw and eyes flashing red.

His pants turned animalistic as his wolf surged forward and he rolled back onto the bed.

When the pain died down again for a few minutes, then resumed, an awful thought slammed into him.

His wolf instantly told him that it had to be right.

Tears fell endlessly from his eyes as he started to whimper and sob.

Wooyoung was having their baby.

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.

The room was a flurry of motion the instant his water broke.

His midwife was called upon instantly and San carried Wooyoung to the bed, propping him up slightly on some pillows.

The contractions were coming hard and fast.

"Have the medication ready, we don't know what's going to happen." The midwife ordered as he pressed a cold cloth to Wooyoung's forehead. "Ok, breathe. Just breathe through it like we've been practicing."

Wooyoung whimpered and nodded, although it felt like he didn't need to be told. Somehow his body seemed to already know what he needed to do and he tilted his head back as he groaned.

San slipped onto their large bed so he could kneel behind Wooyoung's head and keep his hands on his omega's shoulders.

Suddenly everything felt wrong.

Wooyoung glanced at the hands on his shoulder and thought they looked too big... But he could smell rosemary.

He looked around the room, eyes wide. "Wh...Where am I?" He asked.

His heart rate rose and he tried to sit up, but a combination of the hands on his shoulder and another contraction forced him back.

Wooyoung screamed, unable to hold back how much pain he was in. And pain mixed with fear was not good.

"Sir I need you to calm down. If you can't, you could risk losing the baby."

Wooyoung didn't recognize who was talking to him. He didn't know where he was or what had happened to him.

All he could feel was his baby moving himself into position and his instincts told him to start pushing.

"That's it!" The midwife said, bending over to watch the progression.

He leaned over to spread Wooyoung's legs a little more and the omega snarled. There was no way he was going to let a stranger touch his baby.

"Wooyoung, you need to calm down!" The voice didn't sound right, but it was familiar.

"S-S... S-San!" He whimpered. "I n-need San! Where is he?"

The midwife exchanged a look with whoever was behind him.

Wooyoung screamed as he started to push again.

.

.

.

.

"The sedation isn't working! He's burning it off!"

"Use more!"

"It could stop his heart."

"How do we get him to stop?!"

"Bring him in."

San screamed once more as he tried to rip himself away from the table.

The pain was so bad that his wolf couldn't even fully form. One second he was surging forward, the next he was being tossed to the side.

He could feel every ounce of Wooyoung's pain. And his fear.

Not knowing what was happening to his mate was killing him.

Literally.

San felt like he was being ripped apart from the inside.

He could feel his bond being tugged at for the first time in months.

Wooyoung was calling out for him. His mate needed him. And he was strapped to this damn table!

A door opened somewhere and a familiar scent filled the room, although San couldn't tell what it was.

Hands started to fumbled at his restraints. They shook violently as they tried to free the alpha, and there was as a hoarse whimpering coming from somewhere.

San screamed again and finally managed to curl into himself as if it could hide the pain.

A pair of arms dragged him from the table, but couldn't hold him, so they fell to the floor. Then they worked to pull San close to the wall and then cradle him.

"Shhhhh. Take a deep breath."

San instantly felt himself relax and he started nuzzling into and whimpering at whoever was holding him.

"It's ok. It's ok."

The alpha looked up and a new wave of tears came to his eyes. "J-J-Jongho?"

The younger nodded and held San close as he started to cry out in pain again.

Jongho's arms were a comfort San didn't know he needed right now. Even with the screaming, he continued to rock San back and forth and run a soothing hand over the back of his head.

"W-W-W..." San whimpered, pressing his face into Jongho's chest. He couldn't even get the words out. It hurt too much.

And he felt Jongho tense beneath him, which made it even harder. "What is it? What do you feel."

"B-B-B-B-B..." San pointed to his stomach, then curled up and cried out once more.

If he understood, Jongho didn't say, but he held San even tighter, indicating he might have.

Why the Hunter's had shown a little mercy, San didn't know. But in that moment, being comforted by Jongho helped more than he could ever describe...

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.

"That's it! Just a little more, Sir!"

Wooyoung strained as he continued to push.

Everything was happening so fast, and the only thing he could focus on was what his body was telling him to do.

It was the one thing he knew he could trust right now.

He had no idea how long he had been in labor. As time passed, his vision started to blur and it felt like his ears were filling up with water.

His baby... He had to keep going for his baby.

"Keep pushing, you can't stop now. Just a little more and I can help you the rest of the way." The midwife urged.

But Wooyoung felt so tired.

His eyes flicked around the unfamiliar room again.

He didn't want his baby to be born here. Where was San? Why wasn't his mate with him.

"Get the damn medicine ready!" The man behind him said.

Wooyoung tried to tilt his head back to look, but even that was too much effort.

"Sir! Push for me! You need to push!"

He strained and pushed as hard as he could, screaming once more at the overwhelming pain.

It was too hard... He couldn't do it.

His head lolled to the side on his pillow and he whimpered.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


He felt some kind of pain within him. A pain that wasn't his.

Wooyoung reached out for it, trying to figure out what it was...

San.

It was San.

His alpha was in pain, and Wooyoung could tell it was because of him.

He needed to be a good omega for his alpha.

Instinct took over and his wolf took over, helping him push.

Yes, he was a good omega. He he would make his alpha proud!

Wooyoung's head fell back as he strained once more, pushing as hard as he could.

Suddenly, all the pressure was gone and he melted back into the pillows, panting heavily.

He could barely make out crying somewhere in the room, and then a hand gently pushing on his stomach as a voice coaxed him to try and push a little more. Then several warm towels dotting his skin.

"Baby..." Wooyoung whispered. "Baby..."

He held an arm up as his way of saying he wanted his son.

Then a hand gripped his chin and squeezed, hard, forcing his mouth open.

Wooyoung whimpered and wanted to pull away, but he was too weak.

He could make out someone leaning over him, but his vision was too blurry to try and make out who it was.

" **Drink you bitch.** " The voice ordered.

Liquid was poured into Wooyoung's mouth and he swallowed as quickly as he could, following the order.

It didn't stop either. It was like the person was trying to drown him in whatever he was drinking.

Wooyoung's eyes watered as his will left him under the alpha's order.

He was a good omega.

He would make his alpha happy.

So he swallowed the liquid.

And soon he lost all awareness and let himself fall into unconsciousness.


	26. 25

Jongho had been surprised when the Colonel had dragged him from his bed, and even more surprised when he was taken into a room and instantly smelled San's rosemary scent overpowering everything.

And hearing that he was going through this pain because Wooyoung was having the baby made everything even worse.

At first, he wanted to kill everyone in that room as a way to get his rage out, but he knew that would accomplish nothing.

San needed him, so he wouldn't leave his friend's side for as long as it would take...

Jongho made a point to rub the older alpha's arms and rock him back. He would whisper into his ear to try and keep him calm, but when the screaming started, all he could do was lock his arms around the older to hold him in place.

And with each scream his heart broke a little more...

He had no idea if Wooyoung was in pain because of the birth, or if there was something else going on. And it terrified him.

The Hunters stood off to the side, watching in either horror or with confusion as it continued.

And the look in the Colonel's eyes told Jongho he would have some explaining to do when this was all over.

Which is also the reason why he kept the pack link off. He couldn't risk getting distracted because he needed to try and figure out a good lie to cover up what was happening with San.

But he was coming up short.

How was he supposed to explain why San was screaming like this? And if he said it was because San could feel his mate's pain, then that could lead into the pack link.

And that could lead to something much worse.

San screamed again, this time getting much louder and his voice cracked several times.

Jongho yelled at him, trying to be heard over his friend's screams, but it did nothing. San almost convulsed in his arms, then passed out.

The younger's heart stopped and his eyes grew wide as he looked at his friend. "San? SAN!" Jongho shook him and placed a hand on the side of his head.

San was cold and sweaty. His head rolled to the side and he fell limp in Jongho's arms. It made Jongho lift up his hand to hold it in front of San's mouth, waiting for a sign that he was still breathing.

It took a moment, but Jongho let out a little whimper when he felt a shallow stream of air hit his skin.

He pulled the alpha close to him and rocked him back and forth as he finally let the tears flow. He refused to let his pack see him cry, but he didn't care about the Hunters.

His chest hurt as he thought about everything this could possibly mean. If Wooyoung was in enough pain that it made San pass out through their link, what on earth was happening to him? What was happening to his precious Woo...

Jongho bent over San and pressed his forehead to the older's chest.

"Do you mind telling me what the FUCK JUST HAPPENED?" The Colonel said, marching over and standing in front of Jongho.

He knew the man was angry and needed an answer, but the alpha was having a hard time composing himself.

This wasn't how anything was supposed to happen. He needed more time to figure out a lie.

Then he cried out when the Hunter grabbed his hair and yanked his head up. "I'm talking to you, Mutt." He growled, pulling harder.

Jongho whimpered, especially when he actually felt his wolf submitting to the man.

What the hell was happening??

"TELL ME! I WILL NOT ASK AGAIN!"

Jongho tilted his head to the side, feeling his instincts taking over and he bared his neck at the power of the man's voice. "H-H-His m-mate... Is-s in p-p-pain." The alpha whimpered, wincing when the Hunter pulled again.

The man released his grip and snapped his fingers before pointing to San. "Restrain him and put him in his cell."

"N-No..." Jongho tried to hold on tighter, but deep, black eyes glared down at him and the Colonel yanked his head back one more time.

The alpha yelped and looked away as San was ripped from his arms. Then he was dragged from the room and thrown into the small room that had become his personal testing room.

He could feel the anger rolling off the Hunter, and it terrified him. He crawled to the corner and curled up into a ball.

"I thought his mate wasn't with you!" The Colonel said, his voice harsh and demanding. "That's what you told me!"

"And it's t-true! H-He's not..."

"STOP STUTTERING, MUTT, AND TELL ME WHAT JUST HAPPENED!"

Jongho whimpered again but tried to take a deep breath. "His mate is being help prisoner by another pack... And I think he just had their baby. But San could feel everything through their mating bond." Jongho's voice shook as he started to talk, unable to stop himself.

"You can feel each other?!" The man shouted.

The alpha just nodded, whimpering a little. Which made the man snarl and grab a whip from the wall. He snapped it immediately, ripping open the skin on Jongho's arm.

"So you've been lying to me THIS WHOLE TIME?" He cracked the whip twice. "And let me guess, he's being held prisoner at the Ultima, isn't he? ISN'T HE?"

Jongho screamed and pressed himself further into the wall. "Y-Yes! He is!"

"You were just going to use us to fight your war! And that's how you suckered my grandfather in, isn't it? YOU FILTHY MUTTS!! You pieces of trash!! You all deserve to die!" He cried as he whipped Jongho time after time.

The alpha's body seared with pain as he took it. He was too scared to do anything else.

"CAN YOUR MATE FEEL THIS?" The Colonel swung his arm even harder.

Jongho knew he couldn't, because he had turned his link off. But he was worried that was going to crumble soon.

"SPEAK DOG."

"N-No! I turned the link off." Jongho cried out, trying to protect his face even though it hurt like crazy to keep his arms lifted.

"What?" The Hunter paused and let the whip's end fall to the ground, giving Jongho a small reprieve. "Turned what off?"

"My pack link. So they couldn't feel my pain... I didn't want them to feel me hurting... So I shut them out."

Silence reigned as the Colonel process what he was saying. "You can... You can communicate with each other? As a pack?"

Jongho nodded and tried to curl tighter into himself. He had now failed his pack on all levels...

He could feel the Hunter's fury and it made him want to submit even more as his wolf betrayed him.

"Look at me."

Jongho whimpered and turned his head away.

"LOOK AT ME!"

Unable to resist, Jongho lowered his arms and turned to the Hunter.

With one flick of his wrist, the whip flew and wound itself around Jongho's neck. A second flick had him choking and falling onto his hands and knees, splattering blood across the floor.

"Well it looks like you are going to get your wish." The man sneered, pulling on the whip so it started to cut off Jongho's airflow. "I'll attack Ultima, and I will destroy every singe wolf that gets in my way! Then your filthy race will know not to mess with the Hunters anymore! Maybe they will all roll over and play dead, a fitting end for you pathetic DOGS. And you're going to help me! You, and your pack, will lead the attack, which I'm sure they will be more than happy to oblige if they think it means they can save the other member of your pack. And then... I WILL KILL YOU ALL."

He pulled on the whip again and Jongho felt his vision going black.

The pain... The yelling... The power...

Jongho knew he would obey everything the new Colonel said.

Because somehow...

The Hunter had become his wolf's new alpha.

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.

As Wooyoung slowly came back into consciousness, the first thing he felt was pain.

The second was they emptiness inside him.

His eyes flew open and he tried to sit up, but his body immediately yelled at him.

Omegas were at his side in an instant. "Sir! Please, don't push yourself. Your body has been through a lot of trauma." Lionel said.

Wooyoung's breathing got faster as his chest constricted. "Where... Where is my baby?" His head snapped in every direction.

"Your son is fine. He is recovering from the birth. San is watching over him."

"No. I need my son. Where is he?" Wooyoung whimpered, trying to sit up again.

"Sir, you need to rest!" Lionel said, trying to force Wooyoung to lay down. "Bring him more medication!"

"No! I don't want to take anymore! I want my son!" Wooyoung screamed, shoving others away as he pushed himself out of bed.

He fell to his hands and knees and whimpered. Everything burned and he felt like he could pass out at any second.

Something had happened during his labor, something awful. It tugged at the corner of his mind, but it was just out of reach.

Several arms tried to grab him again, but Wooyoung fought against them. Tears came to his eyes. Did something happen to his baby? Is that why they were keeping them apart? And where was San? He should be here right now!

Why was he alone with all these stranger?!

Strangers...

Wooyoung took in all the faces around him and didn't recognize anyone. "Get away from me!" He screamed, scrambling across the floor.

"Grab him! Don't let him escape!"

Bodies started to pile on top of him, pinning him to the floor. He was forced to roll over and his mouth was pried open so the one called Lionel could pour something down his throat.

One cup.

Two.

Three...

Wooyoung was forced to drink mouthful after mouthful.

His vision started to blur and he felt like he was flying. The pain slowly left him the more he consumed.

Soon they didn't have to force him to drink. His body asked for it willingly as it eased his pain.

"Sir. Come back to us. Please, we need you."

The voice was far away, but Wooyoung tried to latch onto it.

Slowly, his vision started to return and he locked on Lionel.

What just happened?

Wooyoung couldn't... Couldn't remember anything.

"Sir, take a deep breath. We've got you, it's ok." Lionel said, helping him off the floor. "You're home in Ultima. You're safe. You are the leader."

"I'm... I'm the leader of Ultima. Yes..." Wooyoung said hesitantly.

That's who he was. Yes. The descendant of a long like of head omegas who had ruled over Ultima for years. He had an entire pack he needed to protect.

As Wooyoung started to remember the role he had as head omega the doors to the room opened. "Sir! Sir we have an issue!"

"What is it?" Lionel asked, placing a comforting hand on Wooyoung's back.

"There's a large group of humans heading down the canyon. They are almost to the wall."

"What?!" Lionel gasped, covering his mouth. "What are we going to do?"

Wooyoung lifted his head up and looked around the room. He still felt weak, but he could sense all of them looking to him for his leadership.

"Gather our fighters and anyone else willing to help us. Get them ready to defend our home. If they are bringing the fight to us the we will be ready. Use the spells that will be best." Wooyoung looked at everyone else in the room before dismissing them. Then he turned to Lionel. "Get me whatever you can to help me recover my strength. As fast as you can, and please... Please find San. I want to see my son."


	27. 26

Everything started happening fast for the pack. Each member was taken out of their cells in the building and were loaded into a truck where they were still separated in individual cells with their arms bound behind their backs.

But they could finally see each other again.

They had been strategically separated from their mates, but that didn't matter.

Hongjoong looked at each of them one by one and tried not to let his fear take over.

Seonghwa was very obviously pregnant right now since he was at about six months. But other than that he looked like he had been well cared for.

Yunho was sitting up, he had been saying his back was improving with the medical work the Hunters had been performing, although he was still nervous about shifting or even moving for long periods of time...

Yeosang and Mingi looked to be ok but were worried about everyone else.

But San looked lifeless. He hadn't been able to tell any of them what had happened in the room with the Hunters. They had all felt him pass out and sensed when he was returned to his cell. The moment he woke up, everyone tried to check on him, but he wouldn't answer. He hadn't shut off the link, but it was like he still couldn't hear them.

He wouldn't even answer Yunho.

And there was still no sign of Jongho.

Hongjoong was worried about what moving them meant. They had been in those cells for so long, and he had been sure the Hunters had originally planned on keeping them in there for much longer.

Something must have happened to force them to move.

The few Hunters he had seen had been heavily armed too. Maybe they were attacking Ultima?

He glanced over at where his beta was watching him with a sad expression. They were both thinking the same thing. No matter what was about to happen, it was still more time that would be spent away from their kids...

.

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.

.

Wooyoung felt tears come to his eyes as he looked down at his son. His beautiful, precious son.

He hummed gently while running a finger over his puffy cheek, loving the small blush on them as the boy slept peacefully.

San stood next to him, peering over his shoulder.

"He's perfect." Wooyoung said, rocking his baby gently. "I hate to leave him so soon..."

"You don't have to go." San voiced. He reached up to place a hand on Wooyoung's shoulder.

As soon as he did, the boy's eyes flew open and he started to cry. Wooyoung started rocking him faster and shushing him gently. He could feel San's anger as he walked away, but right now he didn't care. "Lionel!" He called. The omega came running in.

"I'll take him. Sir, I wish you wouldn't go." Lionel said, his voice shaking as the baby stopped crying and stared to look at Wooyoung with wide, hazel eyes.

"I will not leave my pack behind. What kind of leader would that make me?" Wooyoung bent over to kiss his son one more time before locking eyes with Lionel. "You do not leave his side, got it?"

The omega bowed low and nodded.

With one final glance at his son, Wooyoung made his way to the main courtyard where his alphas and betas were all waiting for him. They were already in their wolf forms and were being fitted with protective armor.

He had never been one for fancy speeches, but Wooyoung looked around and felt a sense of pride as he looked as his pack. "I know this is sudden, and we may not feel as prepared as we would like. But I have faith in all of you. We are strong as a pack and we have a few tricks up our sleeves. Let's show these Hunter's who the superior race is!"

His pack howled in agreement, slamming their paws against the ground or finding a way to beat their armor.

Wooyoung watched as many goodbyes were said. He turned to San and accepted the quick kiss given to him by his alpha before he shifted where he stood.

His shredded clothes fell around him, soon to be joined by San's. He rubbed up against his soot-colored mate before walk down the stairs.

Several of the wolves looked at him with wide eyes and started begging him to stay behind. But Wooyoung kept going to the armory so he could be fitted.

He wasn't going to abandon his pack. Never. He would fight alongside them at all costs.

When they realized he wasn't going to stay behind, a silence fell over the courtyard and Wooyoung watched as every wolf bowed their head to him. A low rumble came from his pack

San stood next to him and surveyed the pack as well. He seemed tense.

 _Are you ok?_ Wooyoung asked, licking his muzzle.

 _I don't want you to go. I'd rather come back to you waiting for me._ He turned to look at the omega and huffed. _I don't like this. It's too sudden. Something isn't right._

_You worry too much. I'm sure everything will be fine._

San's eyes flashed red as he turned to face Wooyoung directly. _I want you to stay by my side the entire time, ok? You're too precious to me to lose._

The omega shook his head and chuckled, then turned back to the omega waiting to fit him with armor.

The leather was adjusted so it fit snug around his stomach, back, chest, sides, and top of his legs. Then pieces of metal were snapped on to the leather, making it so the metal didn't have to be formed. It made the armor a little clunky, but it worked for their needs. A helmet was also slipped over his head.

San was fitted for the same.

A horn sounded from the front gate.

Wooyoung took his place at the front of the pack. He had spent several hours drinking both his medication and a healing serum that was made to help him get his strength back, so he was prepared to do what it took to protect his home.

With the power of his pack behind him, Wooyoung waited for the gates to open so they could make their final charge.

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.

.

When the truck came to a stop, Yunho winced at the pain and worked to keep himself in a good position that didn't irritate his back too much.

He looked around at his pack as the tension rose.

Whatever happened next, they knew they had to proceed with caution.

The door to the truck opened and the Colonel walked in, a dark look to his eye. "Here's the deal. You are all going to shift and fight to protect my men. A few of you have dropped hints about this Ultima pack and I plan to annihilate every single one of them."

Yunho sat up a little straighter. Had he really brought them to the exact place they needed to be to save Wooyoung?

"I don't care who gets in your way. You will kill every wolf out there and keep my men alive, got it?" He snarled. There was a power to his voice that sent a chill down Yunho's spine. Almost as if the man knew he had some kind of power. "And if I see anything I don't like, I will not hesitate to put a bullet in you. Shift. Now."

"Where is Jongho?" Yunho asked as the man started to turn. The only answer he got was a sneer before the Colonel stepped out of the car.

 _I don't like this._ Yeosang whimpered.

 _Try to stay together. At our first chance we will see if we can break away._ Hongjoong said. He took the initiative and shifted, shaking out his fur.

The others followed his lead and they all waited to be let out of their cages. Yunho had the hardest time with it and the others all sent reassuring words to him as he forced his back to bend and twist. When he was finished, he stood on shaking legs and was already panting.

Seonghwa whimpered from his and was turning his head. His pregnancy was still evident in his wolf form and he whimpered while looking at Mingi.

 _Just stay by my side._ Mingi said, his voice strained. _I will keep anyone off you. You need to work on staying calm, ok?_

 _M-Mingi... I'm scared._ The omega whimpered. The entire time they had been a pack, no one had fought if they were more than a couple of weeks pregnant, and that was only because they hadn't known they were pregnant.

 _So am I. I'll protect you._ Mingi reassured.

A loud buzzing sound caused all of them to flinch. San was the first one out, a spark of life had returned to his eyes as he jumped from the truck.

Yunho knew it was because they were at Ultima, and the alpha would stop at nothing to get Wooyoung back.

He followed the others and allowed Mingi to position himself beneath him so Yunho could lay on top of him while being lowered to the ground. The alpha nuzzled his neck before going to take his place next to Seonghwa.

Hongjoong and Yeosang were glued to each other's sides, both whimpering quietly.

The wind changed and Yunho perked up. Pine.

He turned in place to look for his mate, wanting nothing more than to see him again. It had been months.

"Take your places! Arm yourselves!" The Colonel's voice came from behind him. Yunho glanced over his shoulder and let out a cry of pain.

Jongho's once proud tan and black coat was dull and matted, going along with the fact that he looked like he was skin and bones. His head was low to the ground and ears were back as he followed behind the Colonel.

He looked broken.

Yunho started to move forward, but San blocked his path. He too looked worried for their alpha, but he just shook his head and watched.

The beta was happy San had been paying attention, because there was a gun trained on Jongho the entire time...

He tried reaching out to his mate, but the link was still closed.

The pack watched as the Colonel snapped his fingers twice and Jongho immediately sat. The man smirked in response before turning to the group of men in front of him. "I'm sure they know we are here and are preparing to attack too. Use everything you have on them. We should have some helicopters on route, but they won't get here for another hour. Once they arrive, fall back to give them space to fire. Their main target will be the city."

 _No!_ Yunho cried out.

 _Yunho stay calm._ Hongjoong ordered. _I already figured that would be the case. So here's what we are going to do. Mingi, you do your best to keep Seonghwa safe, hang back if you have to. I'm sure once the fighting starts they won't be able to keep an eye on us as easily. Yunho, stay close by and keep and eye on Jongho. We need to try and get him away from the Hunters, but I also don't want you destroying your back. San, you, Yeosang, and I will head the charge and fight our way through to get to the city. Once we get there, you'll go look for Wooyoung. I'm sure they will have him tucked away somewhere to protect him. Yeosang and I will warn the people living there to give them a chance to escape._

He got a chorus of agreement from the others. It wasn't much, but it was the best plan they had.

Yunho looked back at his alpha and let out a soft whine, hoping to get his attention. He thought he saw Jongho's ear rotate a little, but he sat dutifully by the Colonel's side... As if he was no more than a dog.

What had the man done to him?

For the first time in a long time, Yunho feared he might have lost his mate for good...


	28. 27

Mingi watched as the Hunter's started setting up large contraptions that he assumed were going to be used to attack the wall.

Part of him had been impressed when he saw a new wall surrounding Ultima, but they had over ten years to rebuild since the last time he was here so he didn't really know what he had been expecting.

But he had hoped to never set eyes on this place again.

Seonghwa whimpered next to him and he turned to stand a little taller so that Seonghwa could tuck himself in underneath his neck.

 _Just stick by my side._ Mingi whispered. They were about the only words that helped to keep them both calm.

The fear for his mate was all that was on his mind right now. While wolves were still ok to shift while pregnant, it was not something that was often practiced. At least it wasn't in Alpha Pack when he had been growing up.

And in a situation like this, the stress was exponential.

Hongjoong walked over to them with Yeosang by his side. _We will do everything we can to protect you Seonghwa._

 _I don't care what they say._ Mingi growled, his hackles rising. _You all are my first priority. If they think we are going to fight then they are wrong._

 _But we have to..._ Yunho whined, laying down on the ground. _What if they hurt Jongho more?_

Mingi huffed and looked over at were their youngest alpha was following behind the Colonel like a trained pet. There was no life in his movements anymore.

It made him want to rip the man's head off.

The alpha looked up to the sky then closed his eyes, wishing he could speak to his Colonel one more time. He would know what to do.

 _Stick to Hongjoong's plan. We can do this._ Mingi looked at his pack. _And don't let your guard down._

"Prepare to fire!" The Colonel shouted.

Hunters loaded their devices and crouched behind them to await the order.

But before it came, explosions happened from somewhere behind the wall.

The six of them turned to stare at the sky. It looked like Ultima had shot off fireworks. The golden flares shot straight up and exploded in giant clouds of gold powder. It fell slowly to the ground.

Only not all of it made it to the ground.

 _What the hell?!_ Hongjoong stepped forward.

The powder started to surround the city, forming a protective dome around it.

"Fire! FIRE NOW!" The Colonel shouted.

Seonghwa and Yeosang yelped when the contraptions around them fired with deafening booms. They sent rockets soaring through the air and straight at the forming dome.

A couple exploded when they made contact, meaning the dome was forming a magical barrier to protect the city.

San let out a long, high pitched whine when the rest of the rockets made it through the still forming shield. Several sections of the city went up with flames as the screams started.

"Reload! Fire at will! Maybe we can break that barrier down!"

The front gates opened and a wave of wolves poured from the entrance.

Mingi's jaw dropped at the sheer number of them. Had Ultima always been this big? And every wolf looked like they had some sort of protective armor on. They were prepared... That was for sure.

Hongjoong looked over his shoulder, a spark of fear present in his eyes for just a moment.

"Rocket's focus on the city! Everyone else, push forward! Destroy these worthless creatures!" The Colonel yelled, pulling out a large shot gun. He already had two crisscrossing leather holsters loaded with bullets.

Then he snapped his fingers twice and pointed in front of him.

Mingi watched in horror as Jongho stood up and focused on the attacking wolves. Two more snaps and he was running forward.

 _Jongho!_ Yunho shouted and ran after him.

Hongjoong snarled and took off after Yunho, followed closely by Yeosang and San.

It was beginning.

Mingi positioned himself in front of Seonghwa.

The surge of Hunters running forward forced them to move too, but Mingi angled them so they could start going to the outside of the group. Seonghwa stayed huddled behind him the entire time.

.

.

.

.

Yunho pushed himself past his limits to try and catch up with his alpha.

His back screamed at him the entire time, but at this point he didn't care if he could never walk again. All he wanted was to be by his alpha's side.

But he kept getting stopped by wolves from Ultima.

Suddenly Yunho found himself rolling on the ground as a large white wolf's jaws snapped in his face several times.

The beta snarled and used his long legs to throw the wolf off him. He really didn't want to kill anyone, but if it meant keeping himself alive, he would.

The wolf snarled at him and started to advance.

Yunho was the taller wolf, so he used his size to his advantage. He reared up and used his front paws to shove the wolf aside and went straight for the throat. It was the one unprotected area that he could deal damage to besides the legs.

Using all his strength, Yunho clamped down while using his paws to press the wolf's face and chest into the ground. He yanked his head back, ripping a chunk away from the body. Blood stained the earth and the wolf didn't move again.

Now that he was free from his attacker, Yunho stood up straight to try and find Jongho. There were so many things happening at once, though, that he was overwhelmed.

He howled, hoping Jongho would recognize him and snap out of it.

But he got no response.

Yunho charged forward, weaving through the wolves to dodge their attacks. Everywhere he turned, he looked for his love's tan and black wolf.

He had to find him...

He needed his mate by his side once more. It had been too long since he felt Jongho. Ever since he turned off the link...

Yunho needed that emptiness filled. Otherwise he feared he wouldn't last much longer.

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Wooyoung snarled as he flew through the air at his first target.

The Hunter didn't even see him coming until it was too late.

The omega's teeth pierced through padded clothing and flesh as he went for the kill. The man died in his jaws and fell limp the ground.

Wooyoung released him and licked his jaws before running to the next one.

There were a lot more Hunter's here than he had anticipated. But thankfully he had an army of his own. Damage had already been dealt to his city. There was no way he was going to let that keep happening.

He planned on trying to take out the Hunter's weapons. They kept firing rockets at the city. Thankfully the magic shield was in place, but that would only last so long at the rate it was being fired upon.

While he studied the closest weapon, San took down two more Hunters. He never left Wooyoung's side and made sure to watch his back.

When he thought he saw how to take one down, Wooyoung ran forward.

He ducked under one Hunter, then spun around and grabbed his leg. In one mighty heave, he threw the Hunter over his shoulder. The man flew through the air, screaming at the top of his lungs, before he landed with a sickening crunch on top of the closest weapon. This caused it to swivel off it's access and the next rocket fired shot straight to the adjacent one, sending it up in a column of flames.

Several Hunters went flying, but so did his wolves.

Wooyoung saw one pinned to the ground. He snarled and ran forward, determined to save the beta in front of him.

He was knocked to the side when something slammed into him. Wooyoung yelped as he rolled across the ground, his armor bunching uncomfortably beneath him.

Shaking his head, Wooyoung pushed himself onto his feet and turned to his attacker.

It was another wolf.

He perked his ears and looked around. Where was his armor? And why was he challenging him?

Wooyoung growled in demand for him to stand down. He was the leader here!

But the alpha lowered his head and pawed at the ground. His red eyes never drifting from Wooyoung's golden ones. He snarled, an awful gurgling sound that was full of dominance.

There was something familiar about it, so much so that it's power had Wooyoung's legs shaking beneath him.

Alphas weren't supposed to make him submit. Only San had been able to do that. He was the head omega of Ultima. He bowed to no one!

And yet this scrawny tan and black alpha in front of him sent a chill down his spine.

Wooyoung snapped his jaws and stood up straight.

The alpha showed no signs of obeying, though, and in a matter of seconds he was running straight for Wooyoung. Another snarl came from deep within him.

Wooyoung leapt to the side and nipped at the alpha's side. His opponent whirled around in response, faster than he had expected, and lowered his head to ram into Wooyoung's side.

The impact forced the omega onto the ground.

He yelped and kicked his legs out to try and stand, but the next thing he felt was teeth around his throat.

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.

.

.

San ran as fast as he could straight for the fortress. He guessed that Wooyoung had to be locked up somewhere inside. There was no way they would let him anywhere near the fighting.

It was hard to weave through the fighting wolves and Hunters, but was fast enough he was able to weave through the masses.

 _San! Slow down!_ Hongjoong called out.

 _I can't. I need to get to him. If they hit the palace I could lose him!_ San looked up at where rockets kept attacking the shield surrounding Ultima.

When the first explosion happened, he felt like he was being ripped apart. Wooyoung and their baby could be anywhere in that city.

He did his best to ignore the screams and howls of pain around him. If he was being honest, he didn't care who lived and who died outside of their pack.

These new Hunters were terrible people who would have disappointed Colonel Gregson to no end.

And the wolves of Ultima deserved everything coming to them. For them to plot for this long, this thoroughly, to get Wooyoung back here...

It was despicable.

The gates got closer and he was just about to run inside when he heard a yelp.

One he would recognize anywhere.

San slide to a stop and turned around. His heart hammered in his chest.

Wooyoung was somewhere on the battle field.

Panic started to take over.

 _Hongjoong. He's here. HE'S OUT HERE._ San darted back through the fighting.

_What?!_

_I heard him!_ San howled, drawing attention to himself, but he didn't care.

The yelp had been one of pain.

Then he heard a cry that lasted several seconds.

He felt the pain around his neck. Someone's was hurting Wooyoung. Someone was hurting his mate and he was going to make them pay!

The alpha used all his senses to try and find his mate. Something in him told him that he was running the right direction.

An armored beta tried to block his path, but Hongjoong tackled him and Yeosang was by his side in an instant.

Hongjoong made the final kill while Yeosang kept the beta pinned.

The pair moved in sync as they flanked San, both working to protect him as he flew through the battle.

 _JONGHO! NO!!_ Yunho's screamed.

The tone of his voice made San falter. He would have toppled to the ground if Yeosang hadn't stuck his head underneath him and helped him stay balanced.

They ran forward. The fighting was starting to clear as more and more of each side fought to their deaths.

Another yelp came from in front of him, one that had Hongjoong running faster now.

They broke through a group of wolves and Hunters fighting to see something that made them all slide to a stop.

Yunho's multi colored wolf was shaking as he whined. Standing in front of him, Jongho had his teeth locked around an armored wolf.

A small orange and white omega.

And a soot colored wolf was charging at them from behind.


	29. 28

Yeosang came to a stop next to his mate and watched in horror as Jongho started to whip his head back and forth.

The small omega yelped in pain while his body slammed against the ground. His only saving grace had to be the armor he wore. It took most of the impact. But if Jongho decided to bite down any harder, there was nothing to stop his teeth.

San stood next to them, crying out at the scene.

He was about to run forward when another soot colored wolf rammed into Jongho and the three landed in a pile.

Caius was here.

And his eyes were so dark they were almost black as he foamed at the mouth. He was attacking with such a frenzy that he couldn't focus enough to actually sink his teeth into Jongho's body, but that didn't stop his jaws from snapping shut over and over.

Yunho ran to his mates rescue, grabbing Caius' tail and pulling with all his might.

This caused the alpha to spin around and slam his paw into Yunho's face.

The beta cried out and was sent flying.

Yeosang ran to check on him. There was still so much going on around them that he had a hard time focusing on just one thing.

A gun went off right next to his head and he stumbled to the side. He turned his head just in time to see Hongjoong tearing the man to shreds. He moved on to the next one, slowly clearing an area around them and doing his best to fend off any other attackers.

Yunho whimpered as he pushed himself off the ground. The younger beta ran to his side and licked his muzzle. He got a nod in response before they both turned to where Caius and Jongho were rolling around.

Jongho didn't stand a chance... He kept being forced into the ground, and now, Caius had his paws pressed to Jongho's throat.

San roared from where he was standing.

Time seemed to slow for a moment as Caius turned to look at him. His entire body shook and he stepped away from Jongho.

San and his brother were identical in every way in their wolf form. Even though San had always been considered the runt, he was the same size as Caius. They stood there, taking each other in.

Yeosang knew this wasn't going to be pretty, but there was nothing he could do for San right now.

Yunho had left his side and ran to where Jongho was trying to stand.

A howl came from next to him and Yeosang turned to see Wooyoung shaking his head. His helmet flew off and he reared up on his hind legs to paw at his head.

He looked like he was in so much pain.

And at that moment, Yeosang was at a loss... He didn't know where he would be the most help, so he turned to stay by his alpha's side, protecting his pack from the onslaught of Hunters and wolves.

.

.

.

.

As soon as Wooyoung saw the two soot wolves staring at each other, his head felt like it was going to split open. And no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't get the pain to go away.

He was seeing double. That had to be what was going on.

And the wolves around him felt so familiar...

He howled in pain and reared up. Images flashed in his mind, but it struggled to force them aside.

Both soot wolves turned to look at him. One looked concerned, while the other looked angry. But both started to run at the same time, until they noticed the other one moving and suddenly they were at each other's throats.

Wooyoung backed away, whipping his head back and forth.

What was happening to him?

The battle around him seemed to blur as his pack continued fighting the Hunters.

His pack...

For some reason that didn't sound right.

Wooyoung stumbled to the side, suddenly feeling very faint. Nothing felt right. He didn't even feel like he knew his name anymore as he tried to sort out what was going on.

He turned to look at the rest of the wolves around him.

A few armored wolves tried to get to him, but they were blocked by a small red alpha and a multi colored wolf that fought by his side.

Then a black wolf came charging in, taking out a few more armored wolves while a white omega stopped in front of Wooyoung and locked eyes with him.

S...

Wooyoung shook his head and stepped back.

Then his neck seared in pain and he whimpered, falling to the ground.

The white omega started to lick him. The motion was soothing and oddly familiar.

Wooyoung found himself leaning into it and closing his eyes.

It stopped after a moment though and the omega snarled, moving to stand over him.

Wooyoung's head poked out from between his legs and he saw a couple of armed wolves preparing to attack.

He snapped his jaws a couple of times and went to stand, but the white omega used his weight to keep him pinned to the ground.

The armored wolves looked at him in surprised, but started to back away with their tails between their legs.

The omega started licking his head and neck again, whining nonstop as he did. There was a sense of urgency to it what Wooyoung didn't understand. Although nothing was making sense to him right now...

.

.

.

.

Yunho dodged around where San and Caius were trying to rip each other to shreds to kneel next to Jongho.

His alpha was stunned and just blinking over and over.

He knew it wasn't the best idea, but Yunho shifted and pulled Jongho's head into his lap.

"J-Jongho? Baby it's me, please look at me." He said, trying to keep his voice even. He ran his hands through Jongho's fur and cringed when he felt just how thin his alpha was. "Jongho, please."

Then alpha's eyes opened slowly and it was easy to see that he wasn't all there.

Yunho lifted the wolf's head so he could look him in the eyes. "Jongho, it's me. Come back to me."

The ground shook next to him as Caius and San rolled past. They both struggled to gain the upper hand as they ripped into each other.

Armored wolves were starting to close in on them, all looking to where Seonghwa was now standing over Wooyoung.

Yunho did a double take. When did Seonghwa get here?

Mingi and Hongjoong were running circles around them, holding the wolves back.

Jongho shifted again, reclaiming Yunho's attention.

He was just about to speak when a rocket slammed into the ground behind a group of Ultima wolves and exploded, sending a blast of heat, dirt, branches, rocks, and wolves in his direction.

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.

San cried out as he was sent flying after the explosion. His vision slowly cleared and he searched for his brother.

Caius had regained his footing first and was running at full speed toward Seonghwa. His head was lowered as if he was ready to ram into the omega.

Letting out a warning howl, too frazzled to thing about using the mind link, San tore after his brother.

Mingi got the message and planted himself in front of both omegas and used his height to try and tower over Caius.

The two alphas collided and Mingi used his strength to push them to the side where they both rolled away.

San paced around the outside, ready to jump in and help as soon as Mingi gave him any kind of a signal.

He was about to run forward and help when he was pulled back by his leg. An armored beta growled and started to drag him, but San was at his wits end. He whipped around and growled, asserting his dominance over the beta.

She released him and San surged forward, closing his teeth around the first thing they found. Her lower jaw crunched under his force and she screeched beneath him.

Another explosion went off nearby, forcing him and the beta apart.

 _Hongjoong! Try to destroy the weapons! Or the Hunters using them. We can't fight this from both sides!_ San called out, turning back to where Mingi was still fighting to get the upper hand with Caius.

Next to him, Yunho was whispering to Jongho, trying to bring him out of whatever trance he was in.

There was too much going on, San was having a hard time keeping up with everything. He wanted to help Jongho, he wanted to get to Wooyoung, he wanted to rip his brother to shreds, all while still having to focus on fending off Ultima and the Hunters.

Then he heard a sound that made his insides shatter.

Wooyoung started whining while trying to crawl out from under Seonghwa. His gaze was focused on where Caius and Mingi were fighting.

Seonghwa nipped at his ears, trying to get him to stop. The white omega looked like he was starting to panic as Wooyoung fought him, but at least the younger didn't try to attack him.

"Jongho please! Please snap out of it!" Yunho shouted next to him.

 _Yunho. See if saying any of our names triggers something._ San said as he ran forward to help Seonghwa. As much as he wanted to go after his brother, he needed to try and keep a clear head right now and help the others.

He heard Yunho almost chanting behind them, telling Jongho about each member of their pack and how they needed him.

San blocked that out, though, as he ran to his mate. He whimpered several times, first in a quick greeting to Seonghwa, then as he ducked down to try and claim his mate's attention.

His wolf was going crazy now that he was finally in front of his mate again. He wanted nothing more than to hold Wooyoung to the ground and rub against him. He needed to feel his mate's touch...

But as he tried to claim his omega's attention, he could see that there was something off. His eyes were dull... Like Wooyoung wasn't all there.

San shifted so that he was standing right in front of the omega and lowered his head so it was level with Wooyoung's. The omega looked at him for just a second, then calmed down a little when Seonghwa started licking the back of his neck.

But still Wooyoung wouldn't look at him. His eyes kept flicking to the side whenever one of the fighting alphas yelped or snarled too loud.

San let out a long whine and licked the tip of his omega's nose.

Wooyoung glanced at him and they locked eyes.

The older felt his heart race when he thought he saw a spark of recognition. He went to nuzzle his mate, but Wooyoung's head shot to the side when several loud booms shook the earth behind them.

Everyone turned to see the golden dome around Ultima crumbling. Screams came from within the city wall. Most of the city looked like it was on fire...

The first to move was Wooyoung. He finally managed to crawl out from under Seonghwa and let out a string of panicked cries as he ran straight for the city.

The second thing to move was more rockets flying through the air. They landed in random places throughout the field, and it looked like the Colonel didn't even care if he hit his own men anymore...

"Wooyoung! No!" Yunho shouted when he saw the omega run straight into the line of fire. "Wooyoung!"

San tore after him, kicking up dirt and grass as he ran at full speed after his mate. He couldn't let Wooyoung run back into that city unprotected. Not this time.

 _San! He got away!_ Mingi called out. His voice was strained and San could feel some pain through the link. He was injured... _Run faster. You can do this._

San pushed himself faster, weaving in and out of the fighting. He jumped over one wolf, landing hard enough to force the air out of his lungs. But he didn't stop.

He could see Wooyoung's orange and white wolf in front of him. He refused to let his omega out of his sight.

Another rocket landed in the city.

 _Hongjoong! Make it stop! Wooyoung is running toward the city._ San managed to get out while swerving to the side to dodge a Hunter.

 _I'm trying, there's a lot of them still back here._ Hongjoong sounded tired...

There was just too much...

When a second explosion happened a little further back in the city, Wooyoung let out a howl of pain before trying to run even faster.

Then San realized why Wooyoung didn't want the city to be bombed. Everything had happened so fast, and it was all so chaotic ever since the fighting began, he hadn't taken the time to think about everything.

Everything.

Their new baby was somewhere in the city, and Wooyoung's desperate flight was to get back to protect his child.


	30. 29

Wooyoung ran as fast as his legs would take him, weaving through the battle happening in front of his home.

His pack parted in front of him, making it so that he didn't have to slow down at all. And if they didn't back away, they were lunging forward to take down a Hunter that might pose a threat.

It looked like the fighting might be dying down, but he didn't know if that was a good thing or a bad thing. There was no way for him to determine the losses of both sides. Everything was still too chaotic.

But he knew he had to keep pushing until he made it back to the main house.

When he entered the city though, Wooyoung nearly came to a stop when he saw all of the destruction. Rubble and bodies were everywhere... And the omegas assigned to stay behind as medics were trying to gather the wounded and put out the fires.

He wanted to stop and help him, but he knew they had things handled. He needed to get to his baby.

Wooyoung ran down the main path. Even now, buildings were collapsing around him. Most of the houses were made from mud and wood so that they stayed in tune with the forest around him. The only thing built from stone was the outer wall and the main house.

A whine escaped him when he saw that the right side of his home had been destroyed.

Panic set it.

He thought he heard someone howling behind him, trying to get his attention. But he couldn't stop. Not now.

The main entrance was on fire. The carpeting, décor, whatever was flammable was burning.

Wooyoung jumped over a section that was blocking his path and had to pivot quickly to keep himself from falling head first into a burning chair.

He crouched low to the ground to try and stay below all the smoke that was trapped inside and constantly being fed by every new thing that caught fire.

But he couldn't avoid it. The smoke filled his lungs and he huffed several times as his lungs screamed at him. His vision started to swim while trying to locate the stairs.

Then something pressed into his side and rosemary joined the awful stench of smoke. A gentle tongue licked him behind his ear for a moment before trying to push him back toward the entrance.

Wooyoung whimpered and pushed back. He scrambled forward and took a deep, as smoke free of a breath he could manage, then ran up the stone stairs to the next level.

A yelp came from behind him followed by several growls, but he ignored it.

The ceiling of the second floor was high enough that when the smoke rose Wooyoung didn't need to crouch over anymore. He shifted and pulled on a pair of shorts and started running to his room. "Lionel! LIONEL!" He shouted a loud as his damaged lungs and throat would let him. "Lionel please answer me!"

He ran as fast as he could, not noticing the open wounds around his neck that were now oozing blood.

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.

.

.

Hongjoong flew through the air as he attacked yet another one of the weapons the Hunters had set up. He and Yeosang had managed to take down two of them. But there were three more that were still firing on the city.

Things were so chaotic, he hadn't had a chance to check in with the rest of his pack, but he hoped they were ok.

The alpha felt blood run down his jaw as he ripped the Hunter away from his post. He twisted his head with enough force to break the man's arm before swinging him in a circle. After releasing him, he watched as the Hunter flew into the next weapon, hitting it with a awful crunch and making the machine topple over and break apart.

Yeosang jumped over him and started to rip this weapon apart, tossing parts at other Hunters when they tried to run forward to stop them.

Just one weapon left to take out.

They could do this.

Yeosang landed next to him and nodded, a look of determination on his face that made Hongjoong feel nothing but pride for his beta.

His mate had never been the strongest fighter, but he had courage. And that's all that was needed right now.

They ran to the fifth weapon.

Hongjoong put on put on a burst of speed and jumped on the top of the weapon. It was knocked off balance and spun to the side, pointing back at the Hunter's makeshift base.

The sudden movement threw him to the ground, but that ended up being a blessing.

The Hunter's had already loaded the weapon.

It went off and the rocket flew straight at the Hunter's main tent. It exploded in a column of flame and screams erupted from any nearby man who was caught in the flames.

Yeosang ran to his side and helped him stand. They both turned to the weapon once more and worked on dismembering it before going after whatever Hunters were left standing nearby.

.

.

.

.

As soon as he heard that name, Jongho shook his head and rolled away from whatever was holding him. Everything was so fuzzy and his head hurt. But there was something about that name...

"Jongho. Jongho please snap out of it, we need you!"

That voice was familiar.

Something grabbed his face and he was forced to look at the face of a man with fluffy brown hair.

Jongho froze and his wolf churned within him, breaking through whatever bonds had been holding him back.

Yunho. His mate.

The alpha whined and blinked several times.

"Yunho, baby please come back to me. Please. Jongho I need you." Tears flowed down the beta's cheeks as he stroked his alpha's fur. But his voice was strained, like he was in pain. Sweat was running down his forehead too.

Then he tried reaching out, but there was something blocking the link. It was like there was a wall there and he couldn't find a way through it.

He remembered the fight, and that he had been attacking other wolves, but there were moments that were completely blank.

"Jongho listen to me. We don't have time for a reunion right now. The others need our help. Mingi is taking Seonghwa away from the battle, he is stressing out too much. Hongjoong and Yeosang are trying to take down some of the weapons." Yunho said quickly, still stroking Jongho's fur.

The names flew through Jongho's head and his wolf latched onto the names of his pack. Yes, his pack. And Yunho was his mate.

He moved forward and shoved his head into Yunho's chest, whining several times. His heart raced when he felt that connection and something told him it had been too long.

Yunho hugged him back with shaking arms and he let out a little whimper.

Jongho pulled back and started to shift, but Yunho started to shake his head. "No, there's no time. Follow San." Yunho bent forward and let his head drop.

The alpha whined and nudged him with his nose. What was wrong with his mate? Why couldn't he feel anything?

"M-Mingi is coming back for me." Yunho started to pant. "So I'll be ok. But you n-need to go help San and W-Wooyoung."

Jongho froze. Wooyoung. They had found him?!

He looked around for the little omega as everything started coming back to him.

"Go. They ran to the fortress. P-Please hurry." Yunho lifted his head up and pulled Jongho close so he could kiss his forehead. "W-Welcome back my love." He said and gave a forced smile.

Jongho really didn't want to leave. He needed to figure out what was going on with his beta, but Yunho started to push him away. He must be really worried about Wooyoung if he was doing this...

So he turned and started to weave through the fighting happening around them. It started to sink in just how weak he actually was right now. He could barely run for more than a few minutes before he had to slow to a trot to catch his breath.

What the hell had happened to him?

The city was in ruin and Jongho felt very overwhelmed as he tried to process everything that was happening. As he moved forward, he vaguely remembered being the test subject for the Colonel. But that was all a blur.

His wolf reared up within him at the thought of that man though. He had done something to mess with Jongho's mind, and the thought of being around the Colonel terrified him.

Jongho shook his head and kept moving.

He couldn't focus on that now. He needed to work on finding San and Wooyoung.

.

.

.

.

Yunho cried out as soon as he knew Jongho would be out of hearing range.

The pain of shifting was just now catching up to him and he could barely breath. His back seared as if he was laying in the fire that plagued the city in front of him.

He felt bad, but he had lied to his alpha. Mingi wasn't coming for him. The alpha had ushered Seonghwa away from the fighting as soon as Wooyoung had run away. Seonghwa had initially tried to give chance, his concern for their friend taking over everything else, but Mingi stopped him in an instant.

Now the couple was nowhere to be seen.

And Yunho was too weak to access his pack link.

The only thing he could focus on was the pain in his back. It consumed every bit of his being.

Slowly, he lowered himself to the ground, shifting between curling in on himself and trying to lay straight. Nothing eased the pain.

He wanted it to stop... More than anything.

At least he got to be with Jongho and see him one last time...

.

.

.

.

The moment Wooyoung had pushed him away and ran for the stairs, San felt the slight sting of rejection. But he knew Wooyoung wasn't in the right state of mind.

He had moved to follow after his mate immediately.

But before he could reached them, a pair of strong jaws latched onto his tail and pulled back.

San yelped and spun around, coming face to face with his brother.

Caius lunged for him and they both rolled around the burning hall. His brother's snarls and growls sent a chill down his spine. He spun out of the way and rammed his head into his brother's side, forcing him into a nearby fire.

His howl of pain was one of the worst sounds he had ever heard.

It was uncanny, watching a wolf identical to his own flailing in the fire before him. But San shook it off and ran for the stairs.

He could hear Wooyoung shouting somewhere on the second floor.

The smoke cleared when he reached the top of the stairs, although it was collecting in the ceiling. The upper floor was built of stone, but there were still plenty of things that could catch on fire up here.

San's ears twisted back and forth as he tried to locate Wooyoung. The smoke was overwhelming his senses to the point where he couldn't use his nose.

A howl came from behind him and San moved to hide around the corner.

When Caius appeared in front of him, San bit down on his neck and pinned his brother to the floor. He squeezed as hard as he could, feeling blood spilling down his throat.

His twin started to claw at him, so San spun around and threw him down the stairs.

Caius roared while trying to catch his balance, his red eyes locking onto San's.

But San couldn't wait to see what happened to his brother.

He turned and ran down the hall, still trying to locate Wooyoung.

The sound of crumbling stone came from his right and San hand to jump out of the way when an entire wall gave way. One of the towers that had been bombed was still falling apart and was taking out sections of the fortress with it.

More smoke started billowing into the second floor at an alarming rate, and sparks started flying. A few landed on the tapestries on the walls and they too started to burn.

San needed to get Wooyoung out of here. And his baby. His newborn pup was somewhere within these walls...


	31. 30

The coughing just wouldn't stop... Wooyoung felt like he was going to suffocate any moment now from how much smoke he had inhaled. Every breath he took burned.

But he felt a bit of hope when he turned a corner and saw that the hallway to his room was relatively clear.

He ran forward and flung open his door. "Lionel!"

It was silent.

"Lionel!" He screamed.

The door to his bathroom opened and the old omega came rushing out, with Wooyoung's son in his arms. "I'm here Sir!"

Wooyoung let out a strangled, raspy cry and ran forward, taking his son immediately. "Thank goodness you're ok." He said as tears spilled from his already stinging eyes.

His son was fast asleep, but that didn't stop Wooyoung from holding him close and kissing his forehead several times.

"Sir, what is going on out there?" Lionel asked, wringing his wrists as he looked at the doors. "I heard the explosions and immediately put up a protective barrier around this room... You're wounded!"

Wooyoung couldn't quite process the last part of what the omega said. He felt fine... All that mattered was his son.

"You saved my son's life then. Thank you. Now we need to get out of here. They are still firing on the fortress, it could come down any mi-"

The doors to the bedroom burst open again and Wooyoung turned around. Lionel uttered a curse behind him that Wooyoung didn't catch because he was frozen in place.

San came running through, but he looked... Different. Thinner, and with a kinder face. But how was that possible.

The alpha froze and covered his mouth with a shaking hand.

Time froze for a moment as they looked at each other.

Memories of a lake flashed in Wooyoung's mind... And a cave. A house. Other shapes started to form in his mind.

Two little girls...

Wooyoung opened his mouth to say something, when San charged into the room in his wolf form.

He lunged at... San...

Suddenly his head felt like it was being torn in half.

He watched as thinner San shifted and suddenly two soot colored wolves were rolling around on the floor in a mess of teeth and claws.

This didn't make any sense. How could their be two of San? What was happening?

His baby started to cry and he looked down and pulled his son close to his chest.

One San roared and threw the other one into a nearby dresser.

There was no way to tell them apart either...

Wooyoung screamed as his head started to split open again and he fell to his knees. The pain was too much to handle... He barely even registered Lionel taking his son from him, but it allowed him to fall onto his hands and knees.

Lake.

Trees.

Cabin.

Kids.

Wolves.

Brothers.

Black wolf.

Female alpha.

Pain.

Pain...

...

Pain.

.

.

.

.

Jongho finally made it to the fortress and looked up. Half of it was crumbling and it was easy to see that the inside of it was on fire.

He pushed himself forward, even though the smoke made it even harder for him to breath. His entire body felt so heavy from fatigue, but he wouldn't let that stop him.

Carefully, Jongho made his way to the stairs and scrambled up them.

A roar came from his right and Jongho pushed himself into a lope to check on what it was.

Everything was slowly starting to come back to him.

And he was ashamed.

He had let a mere man break him... What kind of alpha would ever do that? There were so many things he'd never be able to tell his pack about... It just showed how weak he truly was.

When he made it to the room at the end of the hall, he could hear the fighting happening and instantly feared for Wooyoung. Guilt slammed into him when he remembered that he had tried to attack the omega too.

He hurried forward and poked his head into the room.

Caius and San were rolling around destroying everything in their path as they fought for dominance. Jongho watched them for a long moment, trying to figure out who was who, but a scream drew his attention.

Wooyoung was bent over on the floor, fisting the hair on the back of his head, and had his forehead pressed against the ground.

There was someone standing behind him holding a baby. The man looked terrified as his eyes flicked between Wooyoung and the fighting alphas.

Jongho felt his lower jaw drop a little when he saw blood coming from Wooyoung's neck from where he had attacked him.

Not wanting to think anymore, Jongho shifted and dressed quickly before darting into the room. 

The older omega's eyes widened. "Who are you? You can't be here!" He started to back away.

Jongho growled at him before kneeling next to Wooyoung. The man didn't seem like he was a threat to the baby right now, and Wooyoung was still screaming...

"Woo." He placed a gentle hand on the back of the omega's head, over his hands. "Woo it's ok. Look at me, you're ok."

A roar came from in front of him and one of the alphas started charging at them. The other one gave a panicked look and snapped his jaws shut on the other's tail, pulling him back into a new round of fighting.

"Woo, baby please!" Jongho begged. His heart was racing as the alphas entered a new competition of trying to see who could get to them first. There was no way to tell them apart... "Baby I need you to look at me."

The omega turned his head and finally looked up. Jongho wanted to cup his face, but instead he pressed his hands against the open wounds on either side of Wooyoung's neck, hoping to stop the bleeding.

Wooyoung froze as he took in the alpha in front of him. He blinked rapidly and then started shaking his head.

Then the older omega ran forward. "Please you have to leave! You're only going to make things worse!"

" **Get away from him!** " Jongho snarled, pulling Wooyoung into his arms to protect him. The omega stumbled back and held the baby close while all the blood drained from his face.

He turned back to Wooyoung and ran his hands through the omega's hair. Tears came to his eyes as he continued to whisper to Wooyoung, trying to get him to snap out of whatever was happening to him.

Especially once Wooyoung started hitting his own head and screaming once more.

.

.

.

.

Wooyoung didn't understand what was going on. He just wanted the pain in his head to stop. It felt like he was being ripped in half.

More and more images kept flashing across his mind.

And now this new alpha wasn't helping.

Or was he?

Wooyoung didn't know.

He slammed his fists into his head, but he barely even felt it.

The alpha's voice sounded so familiar... But who was he?

Trees.

River.

Wolves.

A lake.

Fire.

A cave... Filled with the same scent as this alpha.

Wooyoung's neck started to burn on the opposite side of his mating mark, as if it was trying to remind him of something.

"Woo, baby please..." The alpha sobbed, rocking him back and forth.

That scent... Pine...

Wooyoung opened his eyes and sat up, taking in the alpha's face.

"Jongho?" The name sounded so foreign, but so right at the same time.

"Yes, Yes Woo it's me." Jongho stroked his cheeks.

Wooyoung felt his wolf react immediately and he leaned into the touch. He was so confused... "What's... What's going on?"

"We can explain later, but first we need to get you out of here." Jongho started to pull him up off the ground.

Then a crash came from their right. One of the soot wolves had been thrown into he bed and was now tangled in all of the sheets. He whimpered and struggled to regain his feet.

The other one shifted.

"Wooyoung!" San called out.

The omega turned to look at him as he ran forward. His vision blurred and he heard his baby's cry get even louder.

And Jongho growled and tried to push Wooyoung behind him.

"Jongho stop!" Wooyoung said, even as he swayed in place.

"Woo, that's not the real San. Stay behind me."

" **Wooyoung come to me now.** " San ordered.

He felt his knees buckle and Jongho had to twist to hold him up.

" **Stay away from him!** " Another voice ordered.

Wooyoung froze and allowed Jongho to pull him away. That voice. More images flashed through his mind.

"S-S-Sir!" Lionel said from the corner where he was rocking Wooyoung's baby. He looked terrified.

For a moment Wooyoung questioned how he knew the man, and his name, but then Jongho growled one more time and moved back again. The alpha kept his arms around Wooyoung the entire time, trying to shield him from what was going on.

And supporting him when he swayed once more.

Wooyoung turned to see San standing before him. Tall, broad shoulders, muscular arms. And... Fuzzy.

And San. Slender, slightly muscular arms, not quite as tall. And perfectly clear.

Then the worst pain of all exploded in his mind. Wooyoung felt his entire body seize up right before he blacked out.

.

.

.

.

San started to rush forward as soon as he saw Wooyoung go limp in Jongho's arms. He knew the alpha didn't stand a chance against Caius in the condition he was in.

It broke his heart to see how thin Jongho was, but he didn't have time to spare on that.

He called upon his wolf and collided with Caius, sending them both rolling across the floor once more. There was no way he was going to let his brother lay another finger on Wooyoung.

When he caught his balance, he scrambled to pin his twin to the floor and started punching him with every ounce of strength he had left. " **You bastard! You sick, heartless, worthless piece of filth!** "

Caius twisted after taking a couple of the punches and flipped them so San was on the floor. " **Come now brother. Did you really think I wouldn't come for you if I survived how you left me?** " The alpha sneered as he grabbed San's wrists and pinned them to the ground.

San struggled to throw his brother off, but his twin was so much bigger than him.

" **I've been waiting for this day to come for so long. I'm going to savor killing you as slowly as you had wanted to kill me.** " Blood red eyes looked down on him.

Then San was screaming in pain. In the blink of an eye, Caius had grabbed his left arm and broken it in three places.

Jongho howled from behind him and San just shook his head. "S-S-Stay!" He whimpered as tears flowed down his cheeks.

"Oh my dear brother." Caius chuckled, looking up and where Jongho was still shielding Wooyoung. "Always trying to be the hero. It's not going to work this time. I have the advantage. Poor Wooyoung never stood a chance."

"H-H-How?" San forced out as he tried to block out the pain of his broken arm.

"I've been planning this for years. You should have just killed me back at that fortress. It's like you forgot that alphas heal a little faster. All I had to do was wait for my wounds to heal and stop bleeding, then I worked to try and get out of there. I was found by an older beta by the name of Winston. He took pity on me and brought me back here." Caius sneered and gestured to the palace. "It's funny. I had no idea that my parents were working with Reece all those years ago. I was kept locked away in the dungeons because of the healing process I had to go through. Winston had to re-break my bones several times in order for me to heal properly. I was also delirious for much of it."

The alpha glanced over at where the older omega present was trying to quiet the baby in his arms.

"By the time I was functioning again, you had come and gone. But that didn't stop me. When I got word that precious little Wooyoung here was actually some all powerful omega, I convinced Winston to bring me up and I struck a deal with Lionel here, and several of the other omegas."

"What deal?" Jongho asked, his voice shaking.

"Exactly what you see before you. I spent months waiting for the perfect moment to take Wooyoung, knowing he would be the one thing that would trigger my brother. And he was the one thing Ultima wanted to rule." Caius looked down at San, then glanced at his arm. "So it worked out for both parties. It took a long time to come up with the medication that would alter his mind. This would only work if he believed he was here, and that he was happy here. We could play off some of the memory loss as part of the potion he needed to take, but he needed to believe he was happy. And with his mate."

San whimpered. That's why Wooyoung's mark had never been bitten over. He had spent this entire time believing that had been with his alpha... Not Caius. Wooyoung had been bewitched... His heart shattered and he forced his eyes closed.

"That's it brother. Weep for your lost mate. Because now that I'll have killed you, I can officially claim him for my own. And now I know that I can get some pups out of him too. We will rule Ultima together, rebuild it from the ground up." Caius started to laugh. " **You've lost.** "

And for the first time, San felt like he actually had.


	32. 31

_Hongjoong! What's your status?_ Mingi called out while staring through the trees.

He had Seonghwa tucked away in a small grove of trees and was constantly working to calm the omega down.

They had come too close back there... But even Mingi had to admit that he couldn't control his impulses when he saw Wooyoung for the first time.

He wanted nothing more than for their pack to be reunited.

 _Hongjoong?_ Mingi's ears flicked back and forth, listening for any sign of other wolves or Hunter's nearby.

 _Most of the Hunters are fleeing. Yeosang and I managed to take out most of their gear. From what I can tell, the losses are heavy on both sides. No signs of the Colonel though. What happened to the others?_ Hongjoong sounded tired but pleased by his accomplishments.

 _I'm not sure. Wooyoung took off toward Ultima again and San ran after him. I still don't have a connection with Jongho and Yunho isn't answering me._ Mingi let out a little whine and pressed his nose into Seonghwa's neck.

The omega took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. They had both decided that he should stay in his wolf form for now just in case they needed to make a quick getaway.

 _Shit! Mingi we need you!_ Hongjoong suddenly said. _Hurry!_

Seonghwa started to whine and looked up at his alpha. _Stay low and don't make a sound. I'll be right back. Keep breathing._

Mingi turned and ran through the trees, locking on to where he sensed Hongjoong and Yeosang. He knew his alpha wouldn't call him away unless it was important.

And he was glad he left because he saw Hongjoong and Yeosang circling around Yunho's limp body.

 _He's still breathing._ Yeosang whimpered, nudging the other beta's hand with his nose.

 _Yeosang shift and lift him onto my back._ Mingi urged, lowering himself to the ground.

Hongjoong stood watch while Yeosang followed the order. Then the beta ran along side Mingi as they moved at a trot back to where Seonghwa was waiting.

The omega let out a worried whine as he watched Yeosang pull Yunho from Mingi's back, then moved to curl around Yunho's body. Mingi did the same on his other side and both licked his face, arms, and chest repeatedly to show him comfort and to try and keep his circulation up.

 _Was there any sign of Jongho?_ Seonghwa looked to their leader while moving his tail to help cover Yunho's legs.

Hongjoong bowed his head. _No..._

Yeosang rubbed up against his alpha's side and let out a small whimper. _Go look for them. If Jongho has come to his senses, I'd be willing to bet that he has gone after Wooyoung. They may need you._

 _I'm not going to leave you unprotected._ Hongjoong huffed, nipping at Yeosang's shoulder to scold him for the idea.

The younger alpha looked away from Yunho the for the first time since laying down next to his friend. _Yeosang may be right. We don't know what they are up against. I can protect them. I think we are in a safe place for now. Go._

Hongjoong growled and shook his head, but Mingi could sense the conflict in him. The head alpha looked to his mate one more time and they rubbed against each other for a long moment before Hongjoong forced himself to turn around and run away from them.

Yeosang sat and watching him leave, his ears pinned against his head.

Letting out a long sigh, Mingi turned back to Yunho and stuck his nose into the crook of the beta's neck. He closed his eyes and sent out any prayer he knew to make sure everyone would return safely.

.

.

.

.

San couldn't take how much Caius was enjoying this right now. His brother had yet to make any move of killing him, which made him think that Caius was enjoying tormenting him.

"Well brother, I still have three more limbs I need to break. Would you like to to do it fast? Or slow?" Caius purred, picking up San's good hand and rubbing it. "I've always pictured how I would do this. So many scenarios to get back at the alpha who ruined my life. Our parents should have killed you instead of letting you live. Then maybe I would still have my family."

San closed his eyes and just turned his head away. He wouldn't let his brother's words get to him. Not now.

"Maybe I'll let you live long enough to see my reunion with Wooyoung. All I need to do is force some of that potion down him again and tell him that he is still sick from the pregnancy. Works like a charm every time. He gets really clingy after going through that too." Caius started to laugh. "So pathetic."

" **Shut up.** " Jongho growled. " **You're the pathetic one. Why can't you just leave us alone? Wooyoung never did anything to you! Neither did San!** " The alpha's eyes were a deep red, almost black as he set Wooyoung down behind him and turned to face off with Caius.

"Jongho, don't!" San called out, but then his brother grabbed him by his neck and slammed his head against the hard floor, momentarily dazing him.

He felt the weight leave his chest and tried to roll over. The most he could do was turn his head in time to see Jongho scrambling out of Caius' path and leading him away from Wooyoung.

The young alpha didn't stand a chance against his brother.

But San felt like he was going to be sick now that his body started focusing on the pain in his arm.

" **You're going to pay for that mutt! I can do what I want to that worthless omega. He's mine now!** " Caius shouted as he lunged for Jongho. He missed, just barely, and rolled across the rubble strewn floor. " **And you are powerless to stop me! I will kill every single member of your pack. Including the children, once I'm finished with you. And then I will build Ultima up to be the strongest pack there is. I will rule over everyone!** "

San groaned and pushed himself up onto his knees. His brother had lost his mind...

He was just about to stand when the older omega came and knelt next to him. "Here, t-t-take this." He whimpered, holding out a vial in his shaking hand.

San gave him a confused look, but then a small sound drew his attention. His eyes drifted down to the baby resting in his arms and he covered his mouth as his heart broke even more.

Staring up at him, with Wooyoung's beautiful eyes, was his baby.

"San." The omega pleaded. "Please, there's no time. This will h-heal you arm."

"What is it?" San asked, his voice merely a breath as tears collected in his eyes.

"A boy. You have a son. Now go f-fight to protect him. I'm s-so sorry." The omega shoved the vial in San's hands and moved back to sit next to Wooyoung.

A son. He had a son.

His eyes stayed on the little bundle until a crash and a yelp came from behind him.

He turned to see Hongjoong's wolf picking himself up off the floor, snarling at where Caius was trapped in a corner.

San swallowed the potion, throwing caution to the wind because the omega could have just poisoned him and he wouldn't have thought about it.

Thankfully that wasn't the case as San felt a pleasant heat flow through his arm. He was able to use it moments later, so he shifted with a roar and advanced on his brother.

Jongho forced himself to shift as well.

Caius just started to laugh. Then he shifted and ran straight for San.

The two brothers collided and rolled through the room in a flash of teeth and claws.

His twin had made the smart move, knowing it was impossible to tell the two of them apart, so Hongjoong and Jongho were rendered useless.

San yelped when he felt teeth rip at his shoulder. He twisted and rolled over so he could press Caius into the ground, using his weight to dislodge him.

Then he went straight for the alpha's stomach, latching onto his soft underside. He felt his teeth slice through the flesh and Caius howled in pain before trying to kick him off.

That's when San called on his wolf and forced his dominance on his brother.

The deep, rumbling growl that came from San almost felt like it shook the floor. He ripped his head back, taking part of Caius with him, and stood tall.

Once flick of his eyes was all the other two alphas needed to know it was him.

They surrounded Caius and all gave the order to shift.

His twin squirmed on the floor, trying to fight the order, but San wasn't messing around. His growl got deeper.

Caius went through the forced transformation and immediately tried to press a hand to the hole in his side that had thick, red blood oozing from it.

But Hongjoong and Jongho lunged forward and grabbed his arms. He screamed when their teeth cut through his skin and they pulled, stretching him between them.

Once again, San saw fear in his brothers face. And he loved it.

He felt his upper lip curling in a snarl.

There would be no slow death this time. No intent to torture. Even if he deserved it.

No, San wanted to make sure he would stay dead this time so he would never come back to harm him, or his mate ever again.

"Sir! Stay down." Lionel's voice came from the side. Both Jongho and San looked over to see Wooyoung groaning and holding his head.

San turned back to his brother.

The man closed his eyes in defeat.

Right as San moved forward and closed his jaws around his twin's head. He snapped them shut and felt Caius' skull shatter. Then he twisted his head back and forth rapidly, completely severing his brother's head from his body.

He spat it out and looked down at the lifeless form.

There would be no coming back from this.

Jongho and Hongjoong both glanced at him, a worried look in their eyes, but San just shifted and wiped the blood from his lips. "I'm ok." He said as they too shifted back.

With a nod, Hongjoong reached over and pulled Jongho into a tight hug.

San pulled on a pair of pants and rushed over to where Wooyoung was still laying on the ground. His heart raced as the old omega moved out of the way to give him room. "Youngie?" He whispered, bending over to cup the omega's cheek.

Wooyoung blinked several times and then his face scrunched up in pain. He pressed the heels of his hands to his head and whimpered.

"Youngie, it's me. It's your San."

"What's happening to him?" Jongho asked.

The old omega closed his eyes and swallowed. "His m-mind is f-fighting him right now. It's wanting m-more of the potion because it's c-confused."

San let out a small whine as he connected foreheads with his mate. He could feel his wolf churning at the connection, finally happy to be reunited with its Soulmate.

He stroked Wooyoung's cheek for several moments, trying to help the omega calm down as he still twisted in pain.

Then, his wolf urged him to form more of a contact with the omega.

"Youngie, please come back to me." San whispered. He started to place slow, soft kisses on both of Wooyoung's cheeks, followed by his nose, his chin, his jaw, and down along his neck.

Then he kissed the mark he had left of Wooyoung neck.

Wooyoung gasped while San let out another whine and kept kissing the mark. He could feel Wooyoung's chest vibrating in a purr and he urged his mate to come back to him.

He almost lost it when he felt a hand on his shoulder and a couple of fingers brush across his mark.

Slowly, San lifted his head up and looked down at Wooyoung.

"Sannie?"


	33. 32

"Sannie?" Wooyoung whispered.

His head was still killing him and it felt like if he were to try and move he would just fall apart. But looking at the face above him things started to fall into place.

He felt numb. There was no other way to describe it.

Memories of the past several months flew through his mind. He was in Ultima... He had been leading Ultima...

But it was all a lie.

His life for the last six months...

"San?" Wooyoung said again, his voice cracking as he looked at the alpha again.

"Yes baby, it's me." The older whispered gently. He ran his hand over Wooyoung's cheek. "It's me." He looked concerned.

Everything was so muddled and he was having a hard time processing what was going on.

This San... was the real one. Right?

Shaking hands grazed around his neck and the alpha whimpered. The touch stung and Wooyoung tried to pull away.

"Sir?"

Wooyoung turned to see an older omega standing in the corner of the room. His eyes fell to the bundle in the man's arms and he immediately pushed himself off the ground and ran over to him.

The man flinched, but then handed over the bundle in his arm.

His sweet baby boy's eyes were red and swollen, but he must have cried himself to sleep because his eyes were scrunched shut. "It's ok. Mama is here." Wooyoung whispered before pressing a soft kiss to the boy's forehead.

"Youngie?" San said from behind him.

Wooyoung froze. The tone of voice sounded so foreign to him, but so right at the same time. It was confusing and made his head continue to hurt.

He turned around slowly and saw three faces looking at him. His vision swam for a moment, but then names started to resurface. "Hongjoong?" He looked at the alpha standing off to the side and got a cautious nod. "Jongho?" The next alpha was shaking where he stood, like he was in pain or trying to hold himself back, but he still nodded. "San." Wooyoung ended, looking at the last alpha.

His alpha.

"I don't..." Wooyoung closed his eyes, releasing the tears that had gathered there. "What happened?" His voice cracked again and he could barely speak.

"I think I can explain that, Sir. I owe it to you..." The omega stepped forward.

Wooyoung glanced at him and swallowed the lump in his throat. "L... Lionel?"

The omega bowed. "Yes. I promise I will tell you everything, but we should leave. The fortress is falling apart though, we need to leave."

"Please, Youngie." San said. His eyes kept straying down to the baby in Wooyoung's arms. "We need to go." He held out his hand.

Wooyoung took it out of instinct and he felt his wolf churning inside him. Yes, this was his alpha. The right San. He could feel it.

The locked eyes for just a moment before Lionel motioned for everyone to follow him down a side staircase.

It was out of the way enough that the smoke hadn't quite filled the corridor, but the old omega also said he was using magic to try and keep the smoke at bay, and that's why it hadn't filled Wooyoung's bedroom yet.

As they ran, Wooyoung tried to sort out everything that had happened. He still couldn't remember what was real and what was fake anymore. Everything had blurred together in his mind.

He could remember leading Ultima so vividly, and he remembered believing that that was where he was supposed to be. With San as his mate. But that was a fake San. He had to tell himself that repeatedly.

And he was with Hongjoong and Jongho. So that meant the rest of the pack had to be there too, right?

Then Wooyoung froze. San stopped to look back at him, but Wooyoung couldn't breathe. His could feel his chest tightening.

His daughters. He had forgotten about Lizbeth and Lorelei.

Wooyoung felt like the walls were closing in on him as he tried to process everything.

Avayla, Theo, Riley, Gunner, Rhodey. He had forgotten all of them. And his pack. The entire time he was here, he hadn't remembered a thing about his true pack.

"Make him move. His memories must be coming back." Lionel urged.

"It's ok baby. We've got you." San said, sweeping Wooyoung off the floor and holding him close. He started to run, following the omega through the halls of the fortress out out a side tunnel.

Wooyoung looked up at his alpha and studied every detail on his face. How could he forget his San? He used one hand to brush his fingers over the mating mark on San's neck and tried to blink through the tears. "S-Sannie..."

He saw the alpha close his eyes and he swallowed hard. The hands holding him tightened their grip.

Once they hit the forest, Hongjoong moved to the front and let them to where the others had to be waiting.

When they got a little closer, Jongho slowed his pace, causing San and Hongjoong to stop and turn to him. "Jongho, why are you stopping?" Hongjoong asked.

Wooyoung noticed that the younger looked scared. He started shaking his head and Hongjoong rushed to his side.

"Jongho, I need you to breath. You're fine. We are all together again. And Yunho needs you. He's injured." Hongjoong said, keeping his voice low, but there was still an urgency to it.

Yunho?

Wooyoung forehead creased for a moment as his mind grew fuzzy. Then he tried to sit up in San's arms. "What's wrong with Yunho?" He asked, looking around for his friend.

All the memories of their friendship came rushing back to him and he felt the need to be by the beta's side.

"Youngie, calm down." San said as he stumbled to the side. He set Wooyoung down so the omega was standing again but kept an arm around his waist.

Nobody answered him, though, because they were focused on where Jongho was shaking his head even faster and muttering unintelligible words.

Now that Wooyoung had a chance, he noticed just how thin Jongho was. All his muscle mass was gone, his eyes were sunken, and he was very pale.

What had happened to him?

Out of some mysterious instinct, Wooyoung handed his baby over to Lionel. The older omega cradled the baby to his body and stepped back a few paces.

San let out a low growl but didn't do anything else as Wooyoung rushed over to Jongho. Hongjoong stepped to the side.

The alpha flinched away from him and closed his eyes.

"What's going on?" Wooyoung asked, cupping Jongho's face. He felt Jongho tilt his head a little, leaning into his touch.

"I don't deserve to go back." He whispered. Jongho slowly opened his eyes and focused solely on Wooyoung. There was so much pain in his eyes and he started to sink to the ground.

Wooyoung glanced up at Hongjoong. "What is he talking about?"

"It's too much to say now. But we need to get back. I don't know what the status of the fighting is. The others are waiting for us." Hongjoong glanced over his shoulder.

The omega turned back to Jongho and caressed his cheeks with his thumbs. "Jongho, I know how you're feeling right now. Trust me... After everything I've done... But they are our family. So they have to take us back, right?"

Jongho's eyes quivered back and forth as he thought about what Wooyoung said.

San shifted uncomfortably off to the side and kept his focus on the ground. His pain was evident and, as weird as it was, Wooyoung was so happy to be able to feel that connection with him again.

After a moment, Jongho slowly looped his arms around Wooyoung's waist and pulled him into a hug. He nuzzled the side of Wooyoung's neck where his mating mark used to be and took a deep breath.

Wooyoung closed his eyes and enjoyed the reunion. He always felt so safe with Jongho. That feeling had never gone away. He was always the one Wooyoung went to if San wasn't available, even more than he went to Yunho.

He let himself slip down memory lane, enjoying the fact that he knew these were his real memories, and smiled when he thought about the cave that he, Jongho, and Yunho used to stay in. Just the three of them.

It was the first time he had felt safe. And Jongho had taken him in with open arms.

"It's going to be ok." Wooyoung whispered.

The alpha nodded and took one of his hands.

Hongjoong let out a sigh of relief and started to lead them forward again.

Wooyoung glanced over at where Lionel was standing off to the side. Something needed to be done with him. But they could figure that out later. Right now they needed to figure out what the status of everyone else was.

The old omega looked terrified, but he took up a spot behind Wooyoung and Jongho, still holding the baby. Wooyoung knew he could be trusted with that at least. He had been helping take care of the baby for him ever since he had given birth.

They walked at a quick pace for several minutes, but then Hongjoong moved to a quick jog.

Yeosang came running out of a grove of trees and the two of them embraced, the beta was lifted off the ground and spun in a circle for a short reunion. But as soon as Yeosang spotted Wooyoung, he tapped Hongjoong's shoulders and was set down.

Wooyoung let go of Jongho's hand and braced himself for impact, which was a good thing because when Yeosang slammed into him they were almost knocked to the ground. "O-Oh Youngie!" The beta sobbed.

The younger couldn't even find any words. With each passing moment he was starting to feel more and more like himself again.

Leaves and branches rustled next to him and Wooyoung turned to see Jongho walking forward slowly. The alpha was trembling.

"Joongie we need to leave. Yunho is in bad shape and I don't know how much longer Seonghwa can hold out." Yeosang pulled away from the hug to turn to his alpha.

"Is there any update on the battle?" Hongjoong asked.

"It's been quiet for awhile..." Yeosang shifted in place. "But none of us felt safe enough to go investigate."

A small, concerned whimper came from Lionel.

Wooyoung bit his lip, feeling a touch of pity for the omega. If things were quiet, then there was the chance that most of their... Lionel's... pack was dead.

Once again a string of mixed emotions ran though his head, making it hurt. This was all such a mess.

San appeared at his side and pulled him into his arms. He could sense Wooyoung's conflicting feelings and new that this was about the only way to comfort him right now.

The group moved forward, and as soon as they broke through the trees, both Mingi and Seonghwa lifted their heads up and let out excited whines at the sight of Wooyoung.

While the omega was thrilled to see them too, his eyes were instantly drawn to Yunho's limp body between them.

Both he and Jongho ran forward. The two wolves moved out of the way and greeting Hongjoong and San, but they didn't shift.

Wooyoung couldn't figure out where to look. He was so worried about Yunho and the state he was in, but he could also see that Seonghwa was very pregnant right now. For him to be here was sign enough that something had happened to them.

He remembered Seonghwa pinning him during the battle and licking him to try and bring him back. He had been in the thick of things but had still done his best to try and help Wooyoung.

"Hwa." Wooyoung chocked out before moving to wrap his arms around the white wolf. He buried his face in the omega's soft fur, while Seonghwa lifted a leg and awkwardly wrapped it around Wooyoung in a sort of hug.

Mingi licked his neck and nuzzled into him, letting out a low, rumbling purr.

"Come on, Mingi let's get Yunho onto your back." Hongjoong urged.

"Wh-What happened t-t-to him?" Jongho whimpered, running his hands through his beta's hair. "Baby, please wake up..."

Wooyoung moved to kneel by Jongho's side, wrapping his arms around his waist and pulling him back so Hongjoong and San could lift the beta off the ground.

Everything started moving so fast.

Seonghwa refused to leave Wooyoung side, staying pressed into him the whole time. He also showed a great deal of interest in Lionel and the baby.

Jongho and Hongjoong stood on either side of Mingi so they could keep Yunho on his back. The plan was to see if they could find one of the Hunter's trucks and try to take that back home. But they still had no idea what to expect when they entered the battlefield again.

They were just about to leave when they all flinched at the sound of some kind of whistle.

Except for Jongho.

He froze, and what little color had been left in his face left it.

"San! Grab him!" Hongjoong shouted, holding onto Yunho so he didn't fall off when Jongho started to walk forward at the sound of two whistle blasts.

"Jongho! Stop!" San ran after him.

Wooyoung was so confused by what has happening, but seeing the dead look in Jongho's eyes terrified him.

Seonghwa whined and they both watched in horror as Jongho shifted right before San could grab him. The alpha bolted forward, running through the trees, without another backward glance.


	34. 33

Seonghwa couldn't believe this was happening right now.

Seeing Jongho run off on his own like that, abandoning Yunho... It could only mean one thing.

The Colonel was still alive.

The omega snapped his head to where Mingi was shaking with rage. Yunho was laying flush on his back, still limp, with both Hongjoong and Yeosang working to keep him on the alpha's back.

 _What do we do?_ Seonghwa asked, starting to panic again. Wooyoung started to move next to him and Seonghwa pushed him pack, not wanting to let the young omega out of his sight.

"Jongho!" He screamed, trying to slip past the wolf.

"Everyone try to stay calm!" Hongjoong ordered, although he looked just as scared. "San go after him!"

The younger alpha nodded and pushed himself off the ground before running after Jongho.

Wooyoung started to run forward as well, but Seonghwa snapped at him, making him pause. The older hand no intention of letting Wooyoung out of his sight again. Not after everything they've been through.

 _Seonghwa, stop. Stay calm._ Mingi urged, letting out a warning growl.

_I won't lose him again!_

_And we aren't going to. But you are in too delicate of a situation to push yourself. If he wants to go, let him go._ Mingi begged. He rotated his shoulders to try and shift Yunho on his back.

In Seonghwa's moment of distraction, Wooyoung managed to slip around him and ran after the two alphas.

Seonghwa's breathing got faster as he looked between where his pack had disappeared and the pack that was still with him.

Then his eyes fell on the old omega standing off to the side with Wooyoung's baby. He looked terrified by everything that was happening, but he constantly worked to keep rocking the baby.

If there was anything Seonghwa could do to help, it would be keeping an eye on him.

He lowered his head and growled, letting the man know what he was watching him.

The other tensed, growing a little pale. But he took a deep breath before speaking, "I'm not going anywhere... I can't leave him."

Seonghwa snarled, not liking the sound of that. There was no way he was going to let this man near Wooyoung again unless it was to hand over the baby.

.

.

.

.

When San burst through the trees, he instantly felt like he was going to be sick. The amount of bodies littering the field in front of him was the worst thing he had ever seen. There was so much blood everywhere, and the older bodies were already starting to smell.

On the far end of the field, there was a gathering of the remaining Hunters. They were all firing into a section of trees.

Yelps and howls kept getting louder and louder...

At the very back stood the Colonel. He was shouting orders at his men while dragging Jongho behind him by the scruff of his neck.

Seeing that filled San with rage once more and he shifted. Suddenly the bodies he flew over didn't matter anymore. He did his best to avoid them, but now his goal was to free Jongho.

He felt a presence next to him and he glanced over to see Wooyoung's orange and white wolf keeping pace with him.

At first San wanted to scold him and tell him to go back, but with everything that had happened, he couldn't reach him through any kind of pack link. That, and he knew Wooyoung would disobey him. It was one of the few times he could get away with not listening to his alpha, and his Ultima blood took over, whenever his pack needed him.

 _What is happening back there?_ San asked, because he was still surprised Wooyoung was here. His first thought went to the fact that their son had been left behind and San almost turned around.

 _Everything is fine, keep going. Seonghwa is watching the omega._ Hongjoong answered quickly. _He hasn't shown any signs of harming your pup..._

_Thank you._

_There must be a history there if Wooyoung so willingly left. Trust your omega San. We will be there as soon as we can._

San huffed and focused on the task in front of him.

Jongho was now cowering on the ground, exposing both his neck and stomach to the Hunter. The sight made San stop in his tracks. It was like... Like Jongho saw the man as his alpha.

He couldn't believe what he was seeing. How was this even possible?

Then he noticed that Wooyoung hadn't stopped running.

San called out for him, but the only response he got was the flick of one of the omega's ears.

It was easy to see why Wooyoung didn't stop, though. The Colonel had lifted his arm and in it was what looked like a cattle prod.

Wooyoung put on a burst of speed and lunged forward. His teeth sank into the man's arm and they both went rolling away.

Several of the Hunter's stopped when they heard their leader shout. San ran straight for them and knocked two to the ground before they even had the chance to lift their guns again. He spun in a circle and knocked a few others off balance, doing everything he could to keep them distracted while Wooyoung dealt with the Colonel.

Something hard slammed into his back and San let out a yelp before stumbling to the side. He lifted his head up and roared, grabbing a gun between his teeth and ripping it from the Hunter's hands. That Hunter lost a chunk of his neck a few seconds later.

He could feel his blood lust taking over, and he was enjoying dismembering anyone who came too close to his deadly jaws.

.

.

.

.

Jongho whimpered as he continued to lay on the ground.

If he moved, he would upset his alpha... That was the last thing he wanted, if he did, he knew he would feel the sting of that whip.

He had already felt it so much already.

That's why he had run the instant the whistle had blown. It had tugged at his wolf immediately. And he was powerless to resist the call of his alpha.

He was so weak...

"Get over here and help me!" He heard the Colonel shout. His voice cracked as if he was in a lot of pain.

Jongho flipped over and rose to his feet. His eyes fell on the little omega charging at the Colonel again and a whimper escaped him.

"NOW!"

The alpha flinched and ran forward.

He lowered his head and prepared to ram the omega if it meant defending his alpha, but at the last second he saw the omega stop.

The two wolves stood there and stared at each other, and the omega bowed his head to Jongho. Then he let out a long whine that struck a chord deep within the alpha.

Wooyoung.

Yes, Wooyoung was showing him that he was an alpha. He was Wooyoung's alpha.

His wolf churned within him. He could hear the Colonel shouting behind him, and he wanted nothing more than to submit.

But as long as he stayed in some kind of contact with Wooyoung, he felt like he could stay strong.

He dipped his head just slightly, trying to send a signal to the older that he was ready. They were going to have to act fast. He didn't know how long he would be able to resist.

Wooyoung seemed to pick up on something, because he snarled again and started to run forward.

Jongho ran at him, and right when they were supposed to collide, he ducked down while Wooyoung jumped over him.

The Colonel screamed in pain, meaning he was distracted.

This allowed Jongho to fight against the forced instincts and turn to face him. Wooyoung had an iron grip on the man's shoulder. Blood flowed freely, soaking his uniform. And his other hand was useless from where the omega had attacked him earlier.

Every time the Colonel tried to shout an order to Jongho, Wooyoung would clamp down harder, turning his words into pitiful screams.

The alpha glanced behind the pair for a few seconds to see San fighting off any other humans that were still around.

Another presence joined them and he turned to see the rest of his pack coming to stand behind him. Yunho was still unconscious and resting on Mingi's back.

The sight stirred something deep within Jongho and his vision started to turn red.

His mate. His mate was wounded. How could he just run away like that?!

For the first time in months, a power surged through Jongho that made him tip his head back and howl. He opened up the connection within him and stumbled to the side when he felt the strength of his pack rejoin him.

 _Jongho_. They all said at the same time. All except Wooyoung. But the look in his eyes told Jongho he was with him too.

A low, vicious growl ripped through his body and he started to walk forward.

The Colonel was pale from the blood loss, and for the first time that any of them had seen, he looked afraid.

As he should be.

Jongho thought back to all the pain. The forced experiments, the torture, the abuse... And all the potential pain this man could bring to their kind in the future.

It would all end here. At least his story.

He knew there would be someone else who could rise up in the future. But this group... This group was one he could stop.

Jongho felt his fur stand on end as he turned against 'his alpha' and the snarl that ripped through him was worse than ever before.

He opened his jaws wide and closed them around the Colonel's throat.

One last, strangled cry came form the man before Jongho yanked his head back and ripped the man's throat away from his body.

Wooyoung immediately released him and hurried over to start nuzzling into the alpha, whimpering repeatedly.

The contact felt amazing. After going so long without being with any of his pack, Jongho pressed his full body into Wooyoung's, wanting this feeling to never end.

He felt whole again.

After a moment, he looked up and saw the few remaining Hunters running for the trees.

They had killed their leader. There was no way they would be able to take down seven powerful wolves, especially ones who had the bond like they did.

Hongjoong walked forward and placed his hands on both sides of Jongho's head, then leaned forward to press their foreheads together. "Welcome back." He whispered.

Jongho let out a long sigh, then shifted so he could hug his alpha.

His real alpha.

"I'm so sorry." He breathed, trying to fight the racing of his heart. He started repeating it over and over.

Hongjoong just rubbed the back of his head and shushed him gently. "You have nothing to apologize for. You did what you thought was best. We can't fault you for that. I'm just so glad you're back."

The younger lost it at his words. He started to openly sob and his legs gave out.

"It's ok." Hongjoong whispered, doing his best to support Jongho's weight. "It's ok. But we need to stay strong because we have one final issue we need to figure out before we can go home."

Jongho tensed and did his best to regain his footing. When he glanced up at his alpha, he noticed a stone cold look in his eyes.

"Wooyoung." His tone matched the look in his eyes.

Jongho turned to see the omega bow his head. Try as he might, he couldn't feel any kind of connection with Wooyoung. There was no sign of a pack link at all.

And the think that scared him the most was the confused look in the omega's eyes.

"I think you need to tell us what the story is with him." Hongjoong jerked his head at where Lionel was standing off to the side, Seonghwa right behind him, watching everything that was going on with tear filled eyes.

Wooyoung slowly shifted and glanced at the older omega.

"Please... Sir..." Lionel whimpered, shaking his head. "Please don't leave us. We need you."


	35. 34

As soon Lionel spoke, Wooyoung felt his heart breaking. No... It felt like he was being ripped in half.

He was finally reunited with his real family. But at the same time, he still felt like he couldn't just toss Lionel and Ultima to the side... He had spent six month believing that he was home here. He had a 'past'. He had protection. They had cared for him and...

Wooyoung shifted and pulled on his shorts before walking over and taking his baby back from the omega, who handed him over without objection.

His son made a small whining sound, but stayed sound asleep. Wooyoung watched him for a moment, taking in everything single detail to confirm that he was ok.

Then his eyes snapped to Lionel and he didn't miss the way the omega flinched. "Explain. Everything."

He could feel the eyes of his pack on him as he stood in the center holding a baby that none of them had met yet. But they would get to that. He needed to know why this was done to him.

Lionel bowed his head and took a deep breath. "When you rejected us all those years ago, things started to fall apart here. The crops weren't growing, the animals were dying, and even we were getting sick more than usual. The pack elders, myself included, started to grow desperate. We didn't want to see our legacy die... So we started coming up with a plan. But they all led back to you. You are the only known omega heir. The magic of our pack only works if you are on the throne. It's a blessing, and a curse that we have lived with for centuries..."

Wooyoung felt his heart start to beat faster at what he knew would be coming next, although he didn't expect all of it.

"We started trying to come up with ways to convince you to come back to us. We were even going to offer for your entire pack to come so you could all stay together. But the main roadblock we hit was the fact that we had no idea where your territory was."

The others started to shift back, except for Mingi and Seonghwa, and came to stand behind Wooyoung for support him, although they all kept their distance. He couldn't blame them. To some extent, they were now strangers to some extent.

The only one who stood a little closer was San, but Wooyoung could feel his nerves flowing off him in waves.

"And then Caius made himself known. He had been nursed back to health within our walls and had spent a great deal of time listening to our struggles. When he connected the dots and realized that he knew you... He came up with the plan that would benefit us both." Lionel started to fiddle with his hands and refused to look up. "I wasn't fully behind the idea, but we were dying, so we voted to let him take charge. He organized search parties of all shapes and sizes, organizing them by sections so he could keep track of where we already looked. I knew he was desperate from the way he spoke, but he had a way with words that had all of us drawn to the idea.

"When he started asking about our spells and doing research, that's when things really took off. His discovery of an old spell that allowed us to manipulate the mind of the drinker was the final piece we needed... Caius doubled the search parties, telling everyone to look for a wolf with lavender as his scent. They came across a cave close by to where your territory is that was full of signs of an omega in heat, so Caius himself left to investigate."

Wooyoung felt the color drain from his face when he thought about the time when his heat came unplanned. San had taken him to a cave to keep him away from the other alphas... They weren't worried about any threats at the time because they were the largest pack and everyone in the area knew not to mess with them...

"So how did he take Wooyoung then? There was no way Wooyoung would leave willingly." Hongjoong asked. He moved to stand next to the omega, placing a hand on his shoulder.

The younger's wolf stirred at the familiar contact and he looked up and one of his alphas. Hongjoong returned the look with a kind smile. One of acceptance.

"Caius watched you for a long time. When the sickness hit, he watched Wooyoung take an herb or a root to help him stay awake to administer the medication to all of you on time. When he showed signs of not taking it, that's when Caius would show himself only briefly so that Wooyoung would start dreaming about him. I don't know why, but he said that it would work. And apparently it did because he started taking the herb again... That's when we gave him another root to mix with it that could create hallucinations... Caius slipped it in your water that day by the lake." Lionel closed his eyes and turned his head away.

"And then Caius pretended that he was me to lure Wooyoung away from the house..." San said quietly.

The older omega nodded. "It's rare for twins to be born, but there are advantages to their wolves. One of them being the identical scents. Caius knew he could use it to get Wooyoung to go willingly, that way none of you would pick up on his distress.

"We started administering the drug immediately to warp Wooyoung's mind and convince him he had been leading Ultima the entire time. And that his chosen alpha was... Well..." Lionel cringed and glanced at San. "You. We knew the drug would have a better effect if part of the mind altering had pieces of truth in it. That's also why we left the mating mark alone, although Caius had his own reasons behind it too."

Wooyoung let out a whimper and felt his legs trembling. He had spent six months thinking he had been with San... When he had really been with his brother.

His stomach churned and Hongjoong pulled the baby from Wooyoung's arms just in time for Wooyoung to spin to the side and fall to his hands and knees as his stomach purged itself. It tasted rotten... And it was a deep shade of green.

He could hear his baby crying behind him and Wooyoung lifted his head up to try and look at him, but then another wave hit him.

Two hands started to run along his back and he instantly recognized them as San and Jongho. They did their best to try and sooth him as the earth started to spin.

"What is happening to him?" Yeosang asked, speaking loud to be heard over the crying boy.

"It's been long enough since his last dose, so his body is rejecting it... we had to give it to him often enough to keep up with the mind control part, and if he went too long between doses then he would start to remember his real life." Lionel covered his mouth and tears started to flow from his eyes. "Then wh-when the b-baby was born, his b-body reacted differently. Caius was forcing it down him at almost triple the rate..."

Wooyoung groaned and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. "Why?" He croaked out. "How could you be ok with that?"

"Because I thought I was doing the right thing for my pack. Sacrifice the one for the good of the many... When we found out you were pregnant it was a blessing in disguise." Lionel sank to his knees. "I know it was wrong, but I was thinking about m-my entire p-pack." He covered his mouth again. "Oh god... My p-pack..."

It was like the realization that the war had ended and he was thinking of all the lives lost. The wailing howl that came from Lionel was painful enough that Wooyoung, and his pack, all cringed at the sound and bowed their heads.

To some extent, Wooyoung could feel it too. The losses to Ultima were astronomical. Not to mention all the damage that had been done to the city itself... There was no way they could recover from this. At least, not for a very long time.

"P-Please..." Lionel sobbed. "I'm s-so sorry... P-Please don't l-leave us... We n-need you."

Wooyoung placed a hand over his stomach and sat up. He looked down at the crying omega and felt his stomach churn again. But he pushed past it and rose to his feet. He turned to Hongjoong and took back his son. "It's ok baby. Mama's here." He whispered, brushing a finger across the boy's cheek.

When he glanced back at where Lionel was still hunched over on the ground, he noticed a few wolves had started to gather. Each one had their head hanging low and their tails between their legs. And all were looking at him.

A small coo drew his attention in again and Wooyoung smiled down at his son. He was staring up at him with wide eyes. His eyes. Even the color, right down to the gold flecks.

"Did everyone know?" He asked, not taking his eyes off his son.

"Yes... It w-was the only way to k-keep the story up. Our w-worst case scenario was you would be drugged f-for as long as it took for y-your son to take over." Lionel whimpered, pressing his forehead to the ground.

Wooyoung closed his eyes and clenched his jaw. "So my life meant nothing to you. I was just a pawn. Someone for you to use for your own personal gain."

"To save thousands." Lionel lifted his head up. His looked broken as he pleaded for forgiveness.

"LIAR!" Wooyoung shouted. He could feel himself starting to shake and he looked down at his son to ground him.

Rosemary filled his senses and San came up and pressed his forehead to the back of Wooyoung's neck. It calmed him down immediately.

With his alpha's support, Wooyoung lifted his head back up and stood up as straight as he could. "From this day forward Ultima is no more." His words were heavy, weighing down the air with the power they held. Lionel whimpered in front of him and all of the wolves sank down. There was no command to his voice, no order from his wolf, but they were the words of authority. The words of the leader of Ultima. "The pack no longer exists. There will be no more omega leaders, no more magic, no more kidnappings. I never want to see any of you again. Leave now and start your lives over elsewhere." His eyes fell to where Lionel was watching him while openly sobbing. "All of you."

Then he turned around and started to walk away, refusing to turn around and give them any more of his time.

San followed after him, placing a hand on the small of his back. The contact made his wolf purr with pleasure.

He could feel the others following behind him, treating him like the leader he was, but as soon as he stepped into the forest, he waited for Hongjoong and kept his head bowed while holding out his hand.

Hongjoong took it immediately and Wooyoung gasped when he felt the pack bond wash over him again. It was another piece he needed to start to feel whole again and it filled him with so much emotion silent tears rolled down his face.

He didn't want to be a leader. That wasn't his place. He knew it was where he belonged. And that was with Hongjoong as his head alpha.

And San by his side.

Wooyoung turned to face him. The alpha's forehead was creased with concern and his eyes flicked back and forth while studying Wooyoung.

"Sannie?" He whispered. The alpha just let out a whine. "I'm so sorry, for everything. But there's someone I'd like you to meet."

They both looked down and San let out several small whimpers.

"This is your son. Our son." Wooyoung held him out. The baby looked up at his father with a curious expression. Then he smiled and reached a tiny hand up to San. The alpha took him and held him close, a look of wonder crossing his face. "He doesn't have a name yet... I could never think of one that I liked. Nothing sounded right. Now I know it's because nothing was right..."

The group stood there in silence for a moment, but then Hongjoong came over to the couple and placed a hand on both shoulders. "There will a time for all of this to be discussed. But for now, Yunho needs us. And we all need to get home."

Wooyoung looked at his head alpha and felt his chest start to constrict. "Home." He sighed, then looked back at San. "Yes, I want to go home."


	36. 35

Mingi waited patiently for Hongjoong to bring over one of the large trucks the Hunters had brought to transport their men. No matter how tired he was, he would stay standing and support Yunho on his back for as long as it took.

It took Jongho, San, Hongjoong, and Yeosang to move Yunho into the bed of the truck after they lined it with any blankets they could find from the remains of the destroyed camp behind them.

Jongho settled in so that he was laying down next to his beta, and for the first time, Mingi was able to take in just how thin the young alpha was. He looked... tiny... next to his beta.

The older turned his head and growled in the direction of where he knew the corpse of the Colonel was and he was tempted to go rip it to shreds.

But then Seonghwa whimpered next to him.

Mingi shifted and dressed quickly before running to his omega's side. "Hwa, it's ok baby. I know it hurts, but try to shift back for me. There's no reason for you to be in this form anymore."

Bright blue, worried eyes glanced at him for a moment, then scrunched in concentration. He could feel every point of pain that Seonghwa went through to try and force himself to shift. But he managed to do it after a few minutes. Mingi pulled him into his arms immediately and held him close.

This was the first time they had really been in contact with each other in months.

He started to scent the mark on Seonghwa's neck and he felt his wolf go crazy when Seonghwa did the same.

Then he knelt down in front of Seonghwa and cupped his stomach. "How is the baby?"

Seonghwa closed his eyes and placed his hands next to Mingi's. They both bit their lip when they felt the baby move, almost like it was rolling over. "She feels good." Seonghwa whispered.

Mingi's head snapped up and he felt tears forming in the corners. "Sh... She?"

"She." Seonghwa closed his eyes and Mingi stood up to pull him into another hug. "I didn't want to say anything... Just in case..."

"I know." Mingi whispered. An overwhelming sense of pride and happiness filled him for the first time in six months. He was having another girl.

And they were finally going home.

He turned and helped Seonghwa get into the back of the truck. San and Wooyoung were curled up together around their baby, so he pulled Seonghwa to the other corner and held him close.

Hongjoong nodded at them from the back and closed the tailgate. Thankfully the back of the truck had a large, covered arch to protect them from the elements, but the back was still open so they could all breath in the fresh air.

There was also a small window that opened up to the cab, which allowed Hongjoong and Yeosang to be with them even though they were trying to find their way home.

"Do you think the kids are ok?" Seonghwa the others.

"Yes. I have faith that they are." Wooyoung answered quietly. His voice wavered as he continued and San started to nuzzle his mating mark. "I h-have t-to... It's the only w-way I can forgive m-myself..."

"What are you talking about?" Yeosang turned around in his seat to look back at the young omega once his tears started to flow freely.

Wooyoung's baby started to whine a little and he lifted a hand to hold the boy's tiny fingers. "I f-f-forgot them..." He sobbed and curled in on himself. "I f-forgot all of you... B-But how c-could I forget about my g-girls?"

His pain washed over all of them and Mingi felt his heart breaking. He couldn't even begin to imagine the pain Wooyoung must be going through right now. If he were to forget Avayla and Gunner...

Jongho lifted up a hand and placed it on Wooyoung's leg, trying to lend come comfort to the situation.

"I know they are ok." Hongjoong said, still watching where he was driving. "They have Theo and Avayla taking care of them, who were both raised by strong parents. I'm sure it wasn't easy, but they will have figured out a way to get through this. We have strong children."

Yeosang sniffed next to his alpha then moved in to snuggle into his side. "I love you." He whispered.

Love. That was the first time that word had been uttered by any of them.

And when he heard it, Wooyoung turned his head to look back and where Ultima was still burning.

Mingi followed his gaze and couldn't help but feel satisfied at what he saw. Hopefully this would be the end of any super packs. Primera was gone, and now Ultima. All that remained was memories, and a bloodline that had no intention of carrying anything on.

For a while, Mingi picked out the shadows of a few wolves that tried to follow them. He couldn't believe that they still wanted to follow Wooyoung, but at the same time he couldn't exactly blame them. They were just trying to follow their instincts, and the person they had chosen as their leader was now leaving them behind.

He was pretty sure he'd follow after Hongjoong for a bit if that ever happened between them. There was no way he could survive without his alpha anymore. He would follow Hongjoong to the ends of the earth if his leader so desired.

Eventually, however, the wolves drifted off once they realized Wooyoung had truly meant what he had said. Ultima would exist no more. At least not in a physical form.

As Mingi looked back at where Wooyoung was sleeping against San's chest, he felt a soft smile cross his face. Ultima would always exist in the small omega though. The omega who killed an alpha, survived losing two mating bonds, a deadly cure so that he could have kids, and now this. Yes, the spirit of Ultima and that strength would live on in their pack.

Seonghwa let out a soft moan and shifted in his seat, leaning into Mingi even more.

The alpha turned and pressed a soft kiss into the messy platinum blonde hair and ran a hand up and down his omega's arm.

Then he looked up and saw Hongjoong glancing at him in the rear view mirror. They both nodded at each other.

The farther away they got from the battle behind him, the lighter they all felt.

But there was still a big challenge waiting for them when they got home...

.

.

.

.

No matter how calm he tried to stay, the closer they got to home, the more nervous Hongjoong got.

He understood what Seonghwa was feeling, what they were all feeling... This had been the longest they had been a way from their kids, and there had been no contact at all.

Plus they weren't coming home as the pack that had left...

Hongjoong was worried about both Wooyoung and Jongho and the mental state they were in, but he was also worried about himself.

Now that he had time to mull over everything, his wolf was feeling poorly about itself, which in turn made his spirits drop.

They both felt like a failure when it came to protecting their pack...

Jongho shouldn't have had to sacrifice himself like that. If anything, Hongjoong felt like he should have been the one to do it. It just so happened that the Hunter's had chosen to interrogate Jongho first...

He hadn't been able to find a way out for them, he hadn't been a good leader.

Plus it had left their pups undefended. He tried to keep up a good front to reassure the others, but inside he was worried that his sons would never forgive him for leaving like that.

Especially Riley. He had been doing so well with his training. Rhodey may not remember this, but Riley would...

Night started to fall over them and Hongjoong worked hard to stay awake. Even though he was scared to go home, he also had no intention of stopping.

He parked the truck at the border of their territory, not knowing what to expect when they got there and asked the others to stay behind.

They must have felt his nerves because no one argued.

Stripping down, Hongjoong shifted and stepped over the territory line. A wave of relief washed over him as his wolf immediately started to hum, liking that it was home.

His ears flicked back and forth, listening for any signs of danger. Nothing felt off about his territory, so he felt like that had to be a good sign.

Right?

Hongjoong picked his way through the trees that never left his memory and continued toward the soft glow that appeared in the distance.

The lights of his home.

He started to go faster, anxious to see what was awaiting him there.

Then something slammed into his side and sent him rolling away.

The alpha jumped back onto his feet and turned to face a grey and black wolf who was snarling at him and flashing blue eyes.

Hongjoong stood up taller and started to use his dominance to make this unfamiliar wolf submit, but then a yip came from his right.

His heart stopped,

A small, dark red and tan wolf was running at him. His eyes were glowing a soft red.

He would recognize that sound anywhere.

Hongjoong ran forward and shifted in midair, only to collide with Riley in his human form as well. They wrapped their arms around each other and sank to the ground.

His son's hot tears rolled down his chest where he pressed his face against it while his body trembled. "Dad..."

"I'm here. I'm so sorry. I'm here." Hongjoong ran his hand through the back of Riley's hair and shushed him gently.

"Is it really you?" Riley pulled back and looked up at him. "Are the others?"

"Yes. We are all home."

"Well it's about damn time." A female's voice came from behind him.

Hongjoong turned around to look and he saw Tina standing there with a worried look on her face while adjusting the dress she had pulled on. "Tina?! What? How?!"

"We have time for all of that later. Just know that everything is fine here. Where is the rest of your pack?" She looked around curiously.

"I left them at the border, just in case." He answered, but he did reach out to the others and told them it was ok to proceed. "How long have you been here?"

"Long enough. You should have told us you were leaving."

"We weren't planning on being gone long. But we were ambushed by Hunters." Hongjoong sighed and stood so that he could get dressed. Riley dressed as well and wrapped his arms around Hongjoong, burying his face in his father's chest.

Hongjoong felt a twinge of pain when he realized Riley had grown several inches.

"But I thought..." Tina tilted her head.

"Later." Hongjoong sighed and turned when he heard the others coming.

Mingi was carrying Yunho on his back, with Jongho walking behind him to support the alpha where needed. Seonghwa and Yeosang were both walking quickly.

The beta broke into a run when he saw Riley and he slammed into his son, sobbing openly and placing kisses over every inch of the boy's face.

Wooyoung and San brought up the rear, their son fussing a little now that he was being jostled around.

Tina watched all of them with tears in her eyes and a hand over her mouth.

They were home. They were all home.

The sound of a back door slamming captured their attention and they all turned to see a girl with platinum blonde hair and a very round stomach waiting to greet them. Standing next to her was her tall, gangly mate. His hands placed on her shoulder to hold her in place when it was painfully obvious that she would run to them if she could.

They were home.


	37. 36

Nothing could even begin to describe the emotions running through Seonghwa's head as he hurried past Hongjoong and his family. He needed to be with his daughter.

And she was trying her best to get to him too.

Theo was helping her down the stairs, a concerned look on his face whenever he looked at her, but that disappeared whenever he looked up and past Seonghwa.

"M-Mama!" Avayla whimpered.

They closed the gap between then, and although it was awkward, they both sank to the ground and Seonghwa pulled Avayla's head into his chest.

With one quick look, Theo ran off to find his parents.

Avayla's choked sobs broke Seonghwa's heart, and he shushed her gently while rocking her back and forth. "It's ok baby, it's ok." He was having a hard enough time holding back his own tears.

"M-M-Mama... Wh-What happened? You w-were just supposed to g-go hunting and then s-suddenly Theo is t-telling me you aren't coming back." Her sobs increased tenfold and she clung to Seonghwa's shirt like her life depended on it.

"I know baby. I'm so sorry." Seonghwa whispered, pressing kiss after kiss into the top of her head. "I am so sorry..."

Feet slammed against the front porch and soon the rest of the kids came running out.

Gunner slammed into Seonghwa's side and flung his arms around the omega's neck. "Mama!! You're home!! Where's Papa? What happened? Where have you been? Why were you gone so long?"

Seonghwa adjusted his grip so he could hold his boy as well, rubbing his nose against the boys forehead. "All in good time, just let Mama hold you." He whispered.

Then Avayla lifted her head up and gazed into the distance. "What happened to Uncle Yunho?" She said, still choking on her words.

Seonghwa turned to see Mingi carrying Yunho out of the trees, moving at a fast trot. And it looked like he beta was awake. Theo was by his side, ready to help when he could.

"Papa!!" Gunner said, standing up to run to him, but Seonghwa grabbed his wrist to hold him back.

Everything happened so fast after that.

The entire pack worked their way into the house. Seonghwa took note of the fact that Tina and Marylou were standing off in the corner when he tried to say something to them, they simply waved him off and he sent them a grateful smile.

Yunho had been set down on the floor and looked like his body was seizing from the back. Theo and Jongho were holding both his hands and trying to calm him down.

San was in a corner hugging both Lizbeth and Lorelai while holding onto his son. Which meant Wooyoung was not with him.

Feeling a protectiveness surge forward, Seonghwa started to look around frantically for the small omega while Mingi pulled their kids into his arms to hug them.

"Out of the way!" Wooyoung suddenly said. He ran past Seonghwa and dropped to the ground next to Yunho. Theo moved so that he was kneeling next to Jongho and they both watched Wooyoung with fear in their eyes.

The younger omega had grabbed a bowl and was now mashing a combination of herbs frantically. His forehead was creased with concentration and he never took his eyes off his task.

Silence fell over the room, expect for the sound of his work and Yunho's whimpers.

Then Wooyoung gathered some of the now gooey concoction on his fingers and started to rub it over Yunho's back. When all of it had been transferred to the beta, Wooyoung moved to straddle him and started to massage it into his back, focusing mostly on his white scar marring the entire right side.

After a few minutes, Yunho's whimpers faded and so did the look of pain on his face.

"What was that?" Jongho asked, his voice soft and weak.

"A numbing salve." Wooyoung answered, still working it into his friend. He said it so matter-of-fact that no one thought to question him.

"Theo wants to know what happened and why none of you are responding to him." Avayla asked, her voice still shaking a little.

Everyone looked at the young beta, then over to Hongjoong.

"We must have been gone long enough that the link broke." The head alpha said, walking over to Avayla. He held out his arm. "I have a feeling that this will fix it."

Avayla glanced up at her father, who just gave her a reassuring nod while teasing Gunner's hair, then back at Hongjoong. She held out her arm and they clasped each other's forearms.

Everyone in the room exhaled sharply as their minds opened up even more.

 _Can someone PLEASE tell me what the hell is going on?!_ Theo's voice suddenly entered their heads.

Jongho turned to him and pressed their foreheads together. _We will explain everything. But I can't even begin to tell you how good it is to hear your voice again._

Theo let out a strangled whimper and moved his head to press it into Jongho's neck.

 _B... Baby..._ Yunho's voice came through weakly and he looked up at his mate and son.

 _Mama_. The young beta doubled over and pressed his forehead to the side of Yunho's head. _Mama I missed you so much._

 _And I, you. It's going to be ok..._ Yunho groaned and tilted his head to look back. It took a moment and then his eyes widened and he tried to sit up. "Youngie!"

"No." Wooyoung pushed down on his back and tears came to his eyes. "S-Stay down. This n-needs time to soak in."

"But Youngie..." Yunho whined, still shifting in place, and then he looked up at his alpha and sobbed. "Jongho... You're both ok."

"We are all ok, and we are home." Hongjoong said, cutting off any long rambling. "Now I think we all need to take a deep breath and try to collect ourselves, and for now, please let me ask the questions. Can we do that?" He looked around the room and received a round of nods.

The head alpha took a deep breath. "First things first." He turned around. "Tina, Marylou, how long have you been here?"

"Three months." Tina said, stepping forward. Her red headed mate peeked around her shoulder with a bright smile.

"We were in the area and thought we'd come say hi!" Marylou added. "But when we got here, we weren't expecting to find just the kids."

"What happened?" Tina asked, her protective nature coming forward.

"I'll get to that, I promise. But have you been here the entire time?" Hongjoong's voice got softer the longer he talked.

Marylou gave him a sad look. "Yes. When we realized something was wrong, and Ava told us that you had been missing for three months, we decided to stay. She was getting further along in her pregnancy, so we wanted to be able to help her. And the others of course."

At her words, Seonghwa covered his mouth with his hand. All the emotions that had been bubbling up inside him started to come forth again and his vision blurred with his tears. "H-How c-can we ever repay you?" He stuttered while turning to his daughter. "Baby I'm s-so sorry..."

"Mama... It's ok..." Avayla said, wiping a tear off her cheek. "But..."

"Before you ask, I promise we will be there." Hongjoong said once more. "Was everything ok here though?"

 _Yes_. Theo answered, drawing everyone's attention. _The kids were... It was hard on all of us at first. I spent several days searching for you. I even found where you were taken, but I lost the trail... So Avie and I decided to focus on taking care of the kids. We did our best to continue your lessons. The twins never missed a dose of their medication. Other packs would come and check on us, but none of them could stay, and we all had our bad days... Marylou and Tina ended up helping out so much._

Yunho lifted a hand up, as best he could, to cup Theo's cheek. _I'm so proud of you._

"They helped especially with my morning sickness... And helping me get through the day. We were actually making plans for when the baby is born when you crossed the border. Tina went to investigate as soon as I sensed it." Avayla sniffed and kept wiping her eyes.

"I sensed it too!" Riley said from where he was still clinging to Hongjoong. Yeosang smiled down at his son and at some point he had gathered up Rhodey in his arms. The youngest was sound asleep, but there was a hint of a smile on his place and his small hand was gripping Yeosang's shirt. "That's why I came to meet you."

Hongjoong chuckled and pulled Riley's head into his chest again.

The group stood in silence for a moment, then Lizbeth and Lorelai moved around the couch to seek out Wooyoung. He turned to them and moved off Yunho's back to pull them into his arms. "My girls... My beautiful girls... Mama is so proud of you." He kissed both their foreheads and closed his eyes. "I'm so sorry for leaving you."

"Are you ok Mama?" Lizbeth asked.

"We were so worried." Lorelai added. They both nuzzled into Wooyoung's neck.

"I'm ok now that I'm home with you." The omega sniffed and held them tight. San came to join them a minute later, gazing down at his son with nothing but pure wonder in his eyes.

"Ok, now that we are getting settled," Yeosang's voice cut through the tension. "And before we get into hours of talking about what happened, I want to know something better." A wide smile crossed his face. "Ava, what are you having?"

A few chuckles came from the room. There was a lot of catching up that needed to happen.

Seonghwa turned to look at his daughter. He was dying to know as well.

A shy smile crept across Avayla's face and she glanced at her mate. He returned the look with nothing but pride. "It's a girl." She said, turning now to look at Seonghwa. "It's a girl, and we decided to name her Maria."

Once more, silence fell over the room and tears filled almost everyone's eyes. It was a beautiful tribute to the beta that had been such a large part of their lives.

Seonghwa lifted a hand up and ran it through Avayla's hair. "It's perfect. Just perfect."

"What about you Mama?" She glanced down at his stomach. The three month difference between them was noticeable. Avayla looked like she could pop any day now.

"It's a girl also."

"That's great!" Avayla's eyes sparkled with excitement. "We need more girls around here! Have you guys talked about a name yet?"

"No, I just found out earlier today." Mingi said, rubbing the back of his head. "This have been a little hectic..."

Before any kind of awkward silence hit again, Seonghwa perked up. "I did think of one that I thought would be pretty." Mingi tilted his head and stepped closer, dragging Gunner with him. "What do you think of the name Trinity?"

"Trinity..." Mingi whispered, his eyes drifting down to Seonghwa's belly. Then a smile crept across his face and he pulled Seonghwa into a warm embrace. "I think it's perfect."

"If we are making announcements." San said after a moment, speaking for the first time since they had been home. "I've been doing some thinking." The alpha turned to look at his omega and watched him closely. "We've all been through a lot together, you more than most. But this," He looked down at the sleeping bundle in his arms, "Our son, is a blessing. Especially with everything that happened."

"Sannie," Wooyoung's eyes seemed to sparkle as he listened to the older speak.

"There is one name that has been floating in my mind every since you told me we have a son. And to me, there's no other name that would work better, because without him, we wouldn't be here right now." San hesitated and ran a finger over the baby's cheek.

"What is it, San?" Jongho asked.

San's mouth curled in a smile and he looked back at his mate. "If it's ok with you, I'd like to name him Chan."


	38. 37

Wooyoung looked at San, unable to believe what his alpha was saying. "Are you sure?"

"Yes. I know it's a little... unexpected. But I can feel that it's the right thing to do. Chan was the first one who loved you and helped protect you. He supported you when no one else would. If it wasn't for him, then I know that Primera would have killed you. And then he sacrificed himself for you against Alpha pack, and I know you weren't given a lot of time to deal with that before we mated." San looked down at their son and rubbed his cheek.

The omega pressed his nosed into Lizbeth's hair and tried to hold back his tears. It still amazed him how understanding San had always been with his past.

"I think that's a great idea." Jongho said softly, glancing at Wooyoung was a gentle smile that creased his eyes.

"Me too." Yunho added. "Chan was a strong alpha. Maybe your son will be too."

Wooyoung let out a small sob and Lorelai held onto him tighter.

"It's nice to meet you baby Chan." Lizbeth leaned over to look at her brother. "I bet he and Rhodey will be close since they are so close in age!" She looked up with a bright smile. "And Maria and Trinity!"

"We are going to have our hands full, that's for sure." Hongjoong looked around the room at his family with nothing but pride. "Now, I know none of us are going to want to sleep, so I suppose we should get comfortable and we can all tell our tales."

Wooyoung swallowed the lump in his throat as he prepared himself to hear about what had happened to his pack. But he was even more scared of telling his own... He was so ashamed of where his mind had been the last six months, and he was terrified his daughters would hate him after hearing about how happy he had been at Ultima.

Hongjoong started them off. All of the kids listened without interrupting. They already understood the gravity of what happened. Wooyoung knew there were a few gaps that needed to be filled since he was taken, but his head alpha talked about how they all went out for a hunt to try and reduce some of their stress when they were waiting for Colonel Gregson to call them back.

Only to be ambushed by his awful grandson and find out that their long time friend had passed from old age. Gunner had buried his face in Mingi's neck after finding that out. The alpha whispered to his son gently and held the back of his head.

Even Tina and Marylou bowed their heads out of respect.

Wooyoung found San's eyes and they leaned into each other. San wrapped an arm around Wooyoung's waist and pressed a couple of kisses against his mark.

Hongjoong went on to talk about the traps that had been laid, and how the new Colonel had been hoping to ambush them at some point. They were all taken to some facility where they were separated immediately.

As they all worked to fill in the blanks, Wooyoung found himself watching Jongho. Finding out that he had been singled out and tortured... And that Yunho was hurt to the point that his back was damaged once more.

But what made it worse was when they talked about all the tests that were run on them. They had been treated as if they were nothing more than a science experiment. Especially Seonghwa since he was pregnant.

When Jongho started to talk about his experience, it was like a new level of silence hit them.

"I don't know what to really say about it..." He started, looking down at his now shaking hands. Theo grabbed them and held them in his large ones to try and comfort his father. "I feel like I let you all down when all I wanted to do was protect you..."

"And that's what you did." Hongjoong said, giving Jongho a kind but almost stern look at the same time. "If you hadn't made that deal, who knows how they would have treated us. What you did was foolish, but very brave Jongho."

The younger alpha lifted his head up. His lower lip was trembling slightly but he nodded and let out a sigh. "I've never been so scared before... I don't know how he did it, but that man... He broke me. That's the only way I can think to describe it. He knew that he could use the rest of you against me, and he took full advantage of it." Jongho's eyes started to water and he lifted a hand to wipe them immediately, then worked to keep his voice from shaking. "I think it was a combination of wanting to protect you guys and being weak... But because my automatic reaction was to submit to him, eventually my wolf gave into it as well. And he showed no signs of being afraid of me either. Ever. That man probably could have given your father a run for his money Mingi."

"Yeah, well, he's lucky he didn't have to deal with me." Mingi grumbled. His upper lip twitched in annoyance.

"I wouldn't want you to go through that though... Any of you." Jongho whispered. "There were times that I didn't even remember being human. I was..." He paused and buried his face in his hands. "I was his pet."

Everyone made to move close to him, but once they saw Yunho pushing himself off the ground they paused.

The beta whimpered in pain, but he knelt in front of Jongho and pulled his alpha into a hug and held him as tight as his weak body would allow. "It's over now."

Wooyoung felt his own tears leaving trails on his cheeks as he looked at the once proud alpha. His body and demeanor showed that he was indeed broken... He would have a long recovery ahead of him to be able to build his confidence as an alpha back up.

But if anyone could help Jongho through it, it would be Hongjoong. And when he glanced at the head alpha, Wooyoung could already tell that he was working out exactly what needed to be done.

They gave Yunho a few minutes to comfort his alpha before Hongjoong turned to Wooyoung. "Well now you know what we've been through. Do you feel up to telling us what happened to you tonight? Or would you like to wait for tomorrow?"

Wooyoung chewed on the inside of his cheek for a moment, then looked at San when he felt his alpha give him a little squeeze.

"It's ok, baby. You don't need to." San whispered.

"I'm scared." Wooyoung said back, his voice so low he barely even heard it himself.

"I know." San leaned forward and nuzzled I to the side of Wooyoung's head. "But nothing you say will change anything. You are still my Soulmate and that will never change."

Wooyoung closed his eyes and smiled. He would be strong with San by his side. So he took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. Then he locked eyes with Hongjoong. "I can do it tonight."

His head alpha nodded and kept his gaze focused on Wooyoung so that he could absorb the story.

"I want to start by saying that a lot of it is a blur... But from what I remember now, I... I hate myself for it. And I owe the biggest apology to you two." Wooyoung said, glancing down at where his girls were staring up at him. "I don't remember being taken, which I know now is because of the drug Caius gave me. But my first memory now, is waking up and being briefed on my daily duties. I had no memory of any of you... Things were fuzzy for me, but whenever they tried to fill in the blanks, they all seemed to make sense."

"You mean... You didn't know about us?" Lizbeth asked slowly.

Wooyoung heart shattered and he hugged both girls tighter. "I'm so sorry my babies."

"It wasn't your fault." Seonghwa said from where he was sitting rubbing his stomach. "From what he gathered from that omega, they had everything planned to work perfectly."

"And it really did... Because I truly believed that I had been ruling Ultima for years. They managed to convince me that the potion they were giving me was to help me through my pregnancy. That the cure had still weakened me enough that I needed that support to make sure the baby was healthy. I was told the memory loss was a side effect of everything. My vision would always go fuzzy, and now that I think about it San... Caius... never looked right. But his scent would always fool me. And with the potion it was so easy to trick my wolf." Wooyoung paused again and swallowed the lump in his throat. "I truly believed that they were my pack..."

"So that explains how you acted with Lionel." Seonghwa whispered.

Wooyoung nodded. "Even now, part of me feels guilty for leaving him behind because he helped take care of me while I was there. Part of me still feels like that was my pack. It's... It's complicated and I don't fully know how to explain it. But he was kind to me and took care of me and helped me with my pregnancy. He was there to support me every waking moment... And even though I know now it was for his own sick, twisted way, I feel like part of him cared about me." At least he hoped that was true, even if he couldn't say it out loud.

He could sense the others exchanging sad looks, confirming his fears that he was being a little ridiculous about this.

"I guess I'm confused..." Avayla said, looking around the room. "Why would they want to do that to you Wooyoung?"

"Because Ultima was a piece of filth pack that didn't care about anything but themselves!" Mingi growled.

Seonghwa turned to him and shushed him gently while tapping his neck. "Easy."

Wooyoung stayed silent for a long moment. He felt both his girls shift in his lap and look up at him with confused expressions as well. "Because I'm a descendant of the leaders there. Ultima is a very old pack that is very deeply rooted in magic. I guess without someone with my bloodline leading the pack, it was starting to fall apart. Literally. When I would go over the history book, anytime there was a gap between leaders, like if a pup wasn't old enough, crops would die, the wells would stop providing water, the animals would all catch one disease or another... I think whoever founded the pack thought it would be a good idea for there to be some kind of connection like that to make sure that it was always going to be a strong pack."

"So how the hell was it surviving without you? Even before all this?" Mingi asked, still giving off how annoyed he was at the whole situation.

Yunho turned his head to look at Wooyoung from where he was still comforting Jongho. "Yeah I'd really like to know that too, because it originally sounded like they were without someone for years before they discovered you!"

"I don't know... Because in my mind I had been leading the pack for a long time. There are a lot of holes, which I'm guessing explains that part of things. My guess would be that the alpha who had been leading them was doing enough to hold it together... But I honestly don't know." Wooyoung sighed.

"Does that mean they could come after you again Mama?" Lorelai asked.

"Or us?" Lizbeth whispered. The two sisters were holding hands and leaning into each other while looking up at Wooyoung.

"No. Oh my babies no. And if that were ever the case I would never let them touch you." Wooyoung made sure to look back and forth between each of them. "No one will ever harm you if I have anything to do with it."

"And they will have to go through me first." San said, resting his head on Wooyoung's shoulder. "And everyone in this room."

"Besides. I gave the order that Ultima needs to be disbanded. I don't think there's enough of it left anyway." Wooyoung glanced at the rest of his pack. They all nodded along with him.

"So that big city, it's gone?" Tina asked.

Everyone worked to fill in any other gaps in the story for each other with what happened in the battle. There were several cheers when San talked about killing Caius.

Once everyone had their questions answered and Wooyoung realized that no one blamed him for what happened, Wooyoung felt so much lighter. He knew it was going to be a long time for him to fully heal, but tonight was a good start.

Tina and Marylou tried to leave, but Hongjoong insisted that they stay in the small hut they had built for Wooyoung when he had been taking the cure.

The rest of them broke up into their smaller family units to spend some much needed time with their kids.

Lorelai and Lizbeth refused to sleep in their own beds, and if Wooyoung was being honest, he didn't want them too. He did, however, pull a crib into their room and tuck Chan in for the night.

Then he and San got situated in bed and their girls crawled in between them.

Long after they fell asleep and the sun started to kiss the horizon to bring in a new day, San and Wooyoung were still awake. They shared endless unspoken conversations, all through just their eyes. Soft touches on the arms or sides were exchanged, their scents rose and fell, and their connection grew.

He never wanted to be apart from his mate again.

And there was an hidden sparkle in San's eyes, promising a much needed reunion as soon as they got the opportunity to be alone.


	39. 38

Life at the pack house slowly, very slowly, started to come back together.

The kids were very needy and demanded a lot of attention, which wore on all the parents, but it was understandable. They had all been through a traumatic experience in their own way.

Wooyoung opened up a little more about a few things that he had learned from being in Ultima, like the healing salve he would rub into Yunho's back every few hours. It still wouldn't heal him completely, but it would dull the pain and it was bringing his motion back while his body helped heal itself as well.

The omega thought Yunho would be back to his 'normal' self in a couple of weeks as long as he kept resting.

Jongho was working on gaining weight again, and he and Hongjoong spent several hours together each day to build up his confidence and work on regaining control of his wolf again.

He was supposed to be second in command, and no matter how much he tried to relinquish the title to Mingi, or even San, Hongjoong refused to let him give up.

Yeosang fell easily back into full time mommy mode and spent a lot of time working on his bond with Rhodey. Wooyoung would join him too, when he could, to make sure Chan was getting fully integrated into the pack.

The little boy was almost an identical copy of San, although he did get Wooyoung's eyes. He was also very attached to Wooyoung and had a hard time with letting anyone else hold him. Even San sometimes. He also seemed to get upset if someone touched Wooyoung too much.

Hongjoong kept saying that Chan seemed to be very aware of his surroundings, even for only being a couple of months old.

The biggest attention grab, though, was Avayla. She had started having minor contractions throughout the day and everyone now was doing the best they could to help her through it.

Theo was glued to her side. The only time he left was when she was resting and he could be found sitting with Yunho. But otherwise he was waiting on his alpha hand and foot.

Seonghwa did his best to keep his daughter calm as well. He spent time coaching her through each one and the pair of them would take slow walks together around their home.

Tina and Marylou stayed to help out with things and they were both prepared to help with the birth if needed.

And it was a good thing they stayed, because Avayla went into a labor in the middle of the night.

Seonghwa rushed down the hall after Theo had come to shake him awake. The beta was pale and looked worried as he turned around constantly to make sure Seonghwa was following.

 _I'm coming baby, I just can't move as fast._ Seonghwa said to him, trying to calm him down.

_She's in a lot of pain Uncle Hwa. I don't know what to do..._

_You need to stay calm, for one. She's going to be ok._

Theo turned to him, looking so much like Yunho when he was worried about Wooyoung, and just nodded.

Seonghwa stepped into the bedroom that they were staying in together and saw Avayla propped up on the bed already. Her forehead was covered in sweat and her nightgown was damp as well. "Hey honey, I'm here. How are you doing?"

"Ma...ma..." Avayla whimpered, reaching for him with a shaking hand. Seonghwa took it and sat next to her on the bed while Theo hurried to her other side. "Mama it hurts..."

"I know. You are almost there." The omega leaned over to kiss her forehead. "I'm right here."

Marylou bustled around the room, setting up towels and a bowl of water.

Then Wooyoung appeared, a tired smile on his face and Chan swaddled in his arms. "Hey Ava, how are you doing?"

"Youngie, why are you awake?" Seonghwa turned to look at him. "It's the middle of the night and you need to be resting."

The younger omega glared at him. "Chan was hungry so I was up anyway. Plus, I wanted to make a mixture for Ava to help with the pain." He held up a bowl in his hand.

After setting the bowl on Avayla's end table, he lit a match and dropped it in, setting the mixture of herbs on fire. Then he waved his hand over it, sending the smoke in Avayla's direction for her to inhale.

She visibly relaxed and let her head fall back into her pillow. "Thank you Uncle Youngie."

"This reminds me of what Maria used to do." Seonghwa touched the bowl and smiled.

"That's because it is. It's an old mixture from Ultima. I just wish I could do more to relax you like she could." Wooyoung glanced at the young alpha, grimacing when she had another contraction and worked her way through it.

Wooyoung stayed for a few more minutes, but when Chan started to fuss, he excused himself.

Avayla's contractions started to get closer and closer together. She did her best not to scream to loud, knowing the others were sleeping, but there were a few times the pain was too much.

Seonghwa did his best to help her through it, dabbing at her head and neck with cold towels and talking to her the entire time. She liked it when he told stories of him cursing at Mingi and threatening to never let Mingi touch him again. It also helped when Seonghwa told her how hard it was for him during his labor.

It felt nice, getting to have this moment with her when he had missed the majority of her pregnancy.

Marylou gave periodic updates on how dilated she was, and replaced the herbs when needed.

The contractions lasted several hours, through the dark of night, and into the early hours of the morning.

"Oh girl, you're ready. It's time to push." The beta said, patting Avayla's knees and spreading them wide.

Avayla nodded and took a deep breath, then groaned and started to push. She squeezed both Seonghwa and Theo's hands, turning to them for support.

Seonghwa knew Theo had to be chanting words of comfort into her head because he would see her glance at him every so often between pushes.

"God this hurts!" She whimpered, trying to prepare herself for the next round.

"I know baby, but you're almost there. You can do this." Seonghwa patted her hand and shifted on the bed.

The next contraction came and Avayla's head fell back and she whimpered.

"Ava I need you to push, honey." Marylou said, leaning down. "She's coming, push! Push!"

Avayla screamed, tucking her chin into her chest. Theo leaned into her and pressed his lips to the top of her head.

"You've got this baby, keep going." Seonghwa squeezed her hand.

She groaned and then whimpered several times once she was done and slumped into the pillows.

"Ok! Her head is out! I can already tell you she's got Theo's hair." Marylou giggled, but then gave Avayla a serious look. "Keep pushing honey, we can't let her sit too long."

"I... I c-can't. Mama..."

"Ava honey I need you to push. You just need to get the shoulders out." Seonghwa looked at her and nodded. "You can do it. I did it with you, now you can do it for your baby. She's almost here."

His daughter nodded and yelled once more, pushing with all her might. Everyone cheered her on and gave her their strength until she managed to get the shoulders out.

Marylou helped pull little Maria out the rest of the way and showed Theo where to cut the umbilical chord.

The babies shrill cries filled the room, and while Seonghwa wanted nothing more than to comfort her, he turned and rubbed Avayla's head. "I'm so proud of you baby. You did so good."

Her platinum blonde hair was damp and stringy from sweat and she could barely keep her eyes open, but she let Marylou help her with the afterbirth while Theo carefully held Maria in his arms.

The look of pride on his face was one of the best things Seonghwa could ever see. Especially since this had been unplanned.

When Avayla was ready, Seonghwa pressed a long kiss to her forehead, then stood up. He wanted to give the new parents some time alone, but he also needed to stretch his legs desperately.

He glanced back once and felt his heart melt at the sight of Theo curled lovingly around Avayla while she stared down at the tiny baby cuddled into her chest.

Marylou was right, she already had a think mop of hair. Seonghwa couldn't wait to see how gorgeous it would be when it grew out.

Everyone was waiting in the living room when he got there, even Yunho. Before they could speak, Seonghwa held up his hand. "They are both just fine."

"What does she look like?" Yunho asked, his eyes wide.

"I didn't get a good look, but she has yours and Theo's hair." The omega chuckled and walked over to pat Yunho's shoulder. Both he and Jongho exchanged a look of joy and hugged each other.

Seonghwa moved to the kitchen to start fixing some food, knowing Avayla would need to get something into her system after all the strain she just put on her body.

He smiled and hummed when Mingi came up behind him and wrapped his arms around his omega's waist and stomach. He hummed a little louder when Mingi started to rub small circles over his skin. "You sure she's ok?" Mingi whispered, resting his head on Seonghwa's shoulder.

"Yes, baby. She did great." Seonghwa tilted his head to rest it against Mingi's, and then they both let out a small gasp when their own little girl started to kick.

"Are you ready to go through that again?" Mingi chuckled and started to kiss along Seonghwa's neck.

"Kind of?" The omega turned around so he could wrap his arms around Mingi's neck. "I don't think anyone is truly ready to go through that kind of pain." He smirked at his mate when Mingi scowled at him.

"You know that's not what I meant."

"Do I?" Seonghwa arched an eyebrow and turned back around.

When Mingi let out a disapproving grunt, Seonghwa pulled away from him and turned on their oven. He kept himself busy making food for everyone. It felt good to stretch his legs after how long he had sat on the bed with Avayla.

The new parents came out just as he was finishing up. "Mama?"

"Ava! Honey, you need to be resting." Seonghwa set the plate in his hand down and hurried to her.

"I'm fine, Mama. Someone wanted to see you." The smile on Avayla's face was the brightest Seonghwa had ever seen as she slowly handed over the precious bundle in her arms.

Maria was sound asleep. Her perfect chubby cheeks were puffed out and her lips worked against each other as she mumbled in her sleep. "She looks like you Ava, and he has Mingi's lips." Seonghwa felt tears come to his eyes as he gazed at the little girl.

He slowly walked over to the couch and sat down next to Yunho, then moved Maria so that she was nestled in both of their arms.

 _She's beautiful._ Yunho looked up at his son and they both flashed the same, bright smile. _I'm so proud of both of you._

 _Thanks, Mama. But it was all Avie._ Theo pulled his alpha into his arms and rubbed his nose against the mark on her neck. She tilted her head, accepting the affection willingly.

 _It was both of you._ Hongjoong said from where he was standing in the corner of the room. _You have both proven yourselves as being capable of overcoming any challenge. And now you have a pup of your own. All of us are so very proud of you. But now it is my duty as head alpha to give you this choice._

Everyone turned to look at him with wide eyes. "Joong, what are you talking about?" Seonghwa said slowly. He could feel Yunho tense next to him and Jongho growled behind him.

Hongjoong gave them a stern look and cleared his throat. _You are always welcome to stay here, you are family after all. But you have someone else you need to think about before yourselves now, and this place is going to get more and more crowded. I wouldn't blame you if you wanted to break off and make your own pack now._

The room fell silent. To some extent, Hongjoong's words made sense. Once wolves reach mating age, they have the option to leave home and start their own pack. Avayla and Theo had never shown interest in it, but there was still always that possibility.

The pair looked at each other for a long moment, having their own private conversation.

 _You can have time to think about it._ Hongjoong added, watching them carefully.

 _We don't need time_. Avayla held her head high, like the proud alpha she was. _We don't want to leave. But like you said, this place will start getting crowded. So what if we built our own place on the territory?_

The tension started to fade at their words and Hongjoong nodded, showing how pleased he was at their answer. Seonghwa was having a hard time containing how happy he was that his daughter didn't want to leave as well. _That sounds like a great idea._


	40. 39

Hongjoong let out a small groan and leaned back in his chair. He ran both of his hands over his face slowly, feeling his stress levels rising.

If he had been stressed about finances before, now it was even worse.

By some miracle, they had had enough money in savings to take care of their bills for the house during the six months they had been gone, so the power and things like that had never been shut off. But they were close now.

He still didn't like the idea of them having to get a job, especially with their family growing so much. They were going to need all hands on deck to help with the kids.

Tina and Marylou had volunteered to go to some of the settlements nearby and do some investigating to see if there was any need for a supplier of meat and pelts.

But even then he was worried it wasn't going to be enough.

Before he had the chance to look at his finances again, the door to his office opened and Yeosang poked his head in. His beta smiled and closed the door behind him. "Why are you just hiding in here?" He asked, walking over slowly.

"I'm not hiding. There's just a lot that needs to be done..." Hongjoong ruffled his hair and shook his head. "Where's Rhodey?"

"Sleeping, finally." Yeosang sighed and pushed Hongjoong away from his desk. "Why are you so stressed my love?"

"I'm just trying to figure out what to do about money. We are going to need to figure out how to get a lot more if we are going to be building the kids their own space, and we need to get supplies and other groceries. We have three babies to take care of with a fourth on the way." Hongjoong fisted his hair and placed his elbows on his knees.

"Joongie." Yeosang whispered. He placed his fingers on Hongjoong's head and lifted it up so that they could look at each other. "Joongie, love, it's going to be ok. You are working on it. But dwelling on it isn't going to help anything."

Hongjoong smiled up at his mate, knowing he was right. He reached up and cupped his beta's cheek, then let his thumb brush across his cheek bone and over his birthmark. "I love you. I'm sorry for being like this."

"There's nothing to apologize for. You are just being a good alpha." Yeosang moved forward, then surprised Hongjoong by placing a hand on his chest and pushing him back. The beta smirked as he moved to straddle his alpha in the chair.

Hongjoong's hands went to Yeosang's hips out of instinct and he arched an eyebrow. He felt his wolf churning within him at how forward its mate was, and the smile on Yeosang's face told him that his beta felt the same.

"And being a good alpha's mate... It's my job to make sure you relax." Yeosang purred. He leaned forward to nibble on Hongjoong's ear for a moment before kissing along his jaw, bringing forth a small moan. "I'd say we've got at least an hour before Riley and Gunner are done with coursework." He whispered in between the open mouthed kisses he was now giving.

Hongjoong tightened his grip on the younger's waist, guiding his motions as he started to rock his hips a little. "Sangie..." He whispered back while running one hand up the bare skin on his beta's back. "Sangie..."

" **Yes my Alpha?** " Yeosang's eyes flashed sapphire blue and he slipped from Hongjoong's lap, pulling his shirt with him.

When Hongjoong tried to get up, Yeosang just pushed him back and dragged his nails down the alpha's chest, making sure to graze Hongjoong's nipples as he did.

The alpha arched his back off the chair in response and dug his own nails into the armrests.

Yeosang started to fumble with Hongjoong's jeans, soon tugging on them and his boxers to yank them to the ground.

Once more, Hongjoong tried to leave the chair, but Yeosang narrowed his eyes and let out one warning growl. Then he ran his hands up Hongjoong's legs and over his thighs until he reached the alpha's hardening length.

" **Let me help you relax, Alpha.** " Yeosang wrapped his nimble fingers around Hongjoong and gave him a few lazy strokes.

The alpha let his head fall back and a low groan left him. The warmth that flowed through him did help him relax. But it also started to drive him crazy.

Especially when Yeosang started to lick up and down the sides. He took his time, like he was savoring every second of it.

Then he swirled his tongue around the tip in a slow, teasing motion.

Hongjoong moved one of his hands so that he fisted Yeosang's hair, but he didn't push. He just used it as a way to anchor himself because he felt like he was already going to explode.

He almost had to laugh. It had been way too long since he, or any of them as far as he knew, had been able to partake in any form of sexual activity.

And when Yeosang started to take him in, all the way down to the base, Hongjoong couldn't help but moan and thrust his hips up.

Yeosang took it without missing a beat and swallowed around him, then started to bob his head up and down quickly.

"F... Fuck... Sangie if you keep doing that..." Hongjoong felt his back arching again.

His beta hummed and took him in again. His nose nuzzled against Hongjoong's stomach and he swallowed once more.

Then he pulled off and started to pull off his own clothes.

Hongjoong let out a possessive growl as he took in his beautiful beta and his mind went to the rest of his pack scattered throughout the house.

"Don't worry, I locked the door, we will just need to be as quiet as possible." Yeosang smirked and started to move forward again.

But Hongjoong had other ideas. He flipped Yeosang around and forced him to bend over the desk. His hands went right to his beta's ass and he squeezed them, loving that they always seemed to be a little more plump after going through pregnancy.

The younger bit the back of his hand to try and muffle his moans. But even his small whimpers turned Hongjoong on even more.

He leaned over and started to lick across Yeosang's entrance, trying to get it slicked up as best he could. He could feel Yeosang wiggling, trying to push himself back onto his tongue. So he gave in and forced in a finger.

Lust was building up at a quick pace for both of them, so Hongjoong slipped in a second finger next to his tongue. He tried to use as much of his own spit as possible as a lube as he didn't have any in the office.

Yeosang's whimpering was starting to get louder, to the point here he had his forehead pressed against the desk.

A beautiful layer of sweat was coating his beta's skin, giving him a delicious sheen that drove Hongjoong crazy.

Unable to wait any longer, he grabbed his beta by the waist and stepped back so that he was sitting in the chair again.

He pulled Yeosang back and lined up his length to start pushing it into his beta's entrance.

The younger whimpered at the stretch and squirmed, begging for even more of his alpha. He helped out by slowly sitting down on Hongjoong's lap, which allowed the alpha to bottom out completely while also surrounding his mate with his arms.

Yeosang let out several small whimpers and let his head fall back into Hongjoong's shoulder, who then started to suck and nip at his mating mark.

It was easy to see that they were both struggling to stay quiet.

Then the alpha started to rotate his hips, working his length in and out at a slow, churning pace. He was teasing Yeosang on purpose, wanting to see what the younger would do.

And he was rewarded nicely.

Yeosang showed his frustration at the teasing by gripping the arm rests and using them to help lift himself off Hongjoong's lap and then slam himself back down.

At first, Hongjoong was content just letting his beta do all the work, but when Yeosang showed signs of tiring, he started to match the pace with his own thrusts again. He kept his arms wrapped around Yeosang's chest and stomach, keeping their bodies flush so that the friction built between them as their sweaty skin rubbed together.

Hongjoong's knot began to swell and he used a particularly hard thrust to force it into his beta, growling as he did.

He had to think fast and slap a hand over Yeosang's mouth when he cried out to muffle the sound as best he could. But this allowed him to also yank Yeosang's head back so he could start to suck marks into his mate's neck.

It only took a couple of more thrusts for his knot to fully burst and he started to fill his beta with his seed.

The sudden pressure caused Yeosang to cum untouched and he whimpered into Hongjoong's hand. His body was limp and he leaned fully into Hongjoong's chest for support.

While they came down from their high, Hongjoong placed kiss after loving kiss across his mate's shoulders and neck, loving the honeyed taste of his skin. And when Yeosang's whimpering stopped, he would let out a few content sighs while letting his fingers dance over his alpha's arms.

"Well I must say, this was a new one." The younger said with a small chuckle.

"I liked it though." Hongjoong said after kissing the top of Yeosang's spine. " **I have you trapped here to do with as I please.** " His voice got a little deeper and he carefully rolled his chair forward so that Yeosang's legs were pinned under the desk.

The beta was about to say something when Hongjoong covered his mouth again. Yeosang cried out in protest, but Hongjoong just ignored him.

Instead, the alpha wrapped his hand around Yeosang's softening length and started to work him up again. Even though they were knotted together, he still didn't feel satisfied with what they had done.

He wanted more.

Yeosang whimpered and tried to push away from the desk, but Hongjoong had managed to lock them in place somehow. His back started to arch and he whimpered when Hongjoong started to stroke him faster.

Then Hongjoong bent his middle finger and forced it into Yeosang's mouth to play with his tongue. He smirked when the beta started to suck in it greedily, betraying his own desire for another release.

" **My precious beta. So good for Alpha. Will you cum again for me?** "

Yeosang whimpered and nodded quickly. His eyes were scrunched in the most adorable way and his breathing was getting faster and faster.

" **Good, because that could make Alpha cum too. Would you like that?** " Hongjoong growled softly, nipping at Yeosang's neck. Yeosang's whimpers got louder and he nodded even faster. " **Would you like Alpha to fill you even more?** "

The beta's back arched and he started rotating his hips a little.

Hongjoong sucked in a hard breath and had to concentrate on what he wanted his hand to be doing right now.

Yeosang came a moment later, sending long, white strings over his own chest and Hongjoong's hand, while Hongjoong had to press his face into Yeosang's shoulder to muffle his own cry of pleasure when he released for a second time within his beta.

When he was done, he rubbed Yeosang's stomach gently to try and relieve and pressure that may be there. But really, they both relaxed back into the office chair, feeling utterly spent but oh so satisfied.

They stayed like that, even long after Hongjoong's knot went down, both loving the connection it brought them. Hongjoong loved just running his fingers over Yeosang's skin too.

Yeosang did twist enough so that they could share a long, loving kiss that neither of them truly wanted to break.

No words needed to be shared, it was all felt through their connection. Yeosang new that his alpha would always be there for him, no matter what challenges they faced. And Hongjoong knew that he would always be stronger with his beta by his side.

Even so, Hongjoong couldn't help but whisper, "I love you, Sangie."

The younger hummed and rubbed their noses together. "And I love you Joong. Always."


	41. 40

After a couple weeks of searching, Tina and Marylou managed to find a human in a town a few miles away who was willing to set up some form of partnership for fresh meat and pelts. They said he seemed skeptical of the idea, but when they promised him their first delivery by the end of the week he said he would await their arrival.

The two betas stayed to help hunt since the packs forces were growing thin with five of them out of commission. Avayla and Wooyoung didn't want to leave their new pups, Seonghwa was too pregnant, and Yunho was still too injured to help. And Yeosang was just stubborn and didn't want to leave Rhodey either.

But it still ended up working out. With the two betas, Hongjoong, Mingi, and San, they were able to bring down quite a few kills.

Theo stayed with Jongho to help him out. The alpha was still trying to build up his confidence and his strength, so they went after some of the weaker deer in the herd.

Both San and Hongjoong kept an eye on him, ready to help if he ever needed it. And it made Jongho feel so pathetic... Even more so, he felt like a burden.

Hongjoong was taking time out of his busy schedule to retrain him as an alpha, and while he put on a good face for his alpha, Jongho found it so demoralizing and humiliating. If it wasn't for the fact that he knew his pack needed him, he would probably consider leaving.

Even trying to take down a deer now was draining him to the point where he was panting heavily after only a few minutes of running.

 _That one._ Theo came to crouch next to him and motioned toward an older buck who was grazing off to the side. _Do you think that one will be ok, Papa?_

 _Yes._ Jongho said, turning to brush his nose against his son's neck. He had to keep his answers short to try and hide his feelings, his son didn't need to be worried about him on top of everything else going on.

 _Great. I'll separate it from the herd._ His tongue darted out to lick Jongho's muzzle once before he took off at a slow lope to get on the other side of the buck.

Jongho sighed and glanced over at where the others were spreading out to mark their own targets. San's soot colored wolf glanced in his direction and tilted his head. But Tina darting out of the trees drew his attention away and he sprang into action as he worked to help her and Marylou separate their targets.

When the herd scrambled, Theo darted out and snapped at the heels of the old buck and sent him bounding in a different direction. The beta could have easily taken down the buck on his own...

But Jongho took a deep breath and pushed himself forward, snarling and trying to call upon his inner alpha.

The buck took notice of him and tried to spring in a different direction, but Jongho, amazingly, was too fast and locked his jaws around the underside if the animal's neck. He clamped down and started to shake his head, trying to break the buck's neck. He could feel his chest starting to tighten from the exertion of energy and his eyelids fluttered.

In one last attempt to take down the kill, Jongho snapped his head to the side and used the weight of the deer against it. When it slammed against the ground, he felt bone snapping in his jaw. The buck didn't stir.

Jongho turned and laid down on his side. His heart was racing and he was panting heavily. Even with all the training he was still so out of shape.

 _Papa?_ Theo trotted over to him and licked his neck to try and help cool him down. _Are you ok?_

 _Yes, I'm fine._ Jongho closed his eyes and tried to control his breathing. He could feel his son's worry and didn't want that happening so he knew he had to force it down.

After a moment, he rose up so that he was standing again and let Theo lick the blood from his muzzle and they rubbed together for a moment before Theo grabbed the buck by its neck and started to drag it home.

The rest of their pack joined them a few minutes later.

Mingi had managed to bring down a really impressive buck that had a large rack on his head. That would sell for some good money. The rest of them were also dragging their own kills.

Hongjoong had a proud look in his eyes as he moved to the front of the pack. They would now have food for their family as well as food to sell. Things were starting to come back together for them.

But Jongho was having a hard time feeling that way. He could still feel his heart pounding in his chest from overworking himself and his legs were trembling.

Mingi and Hongjoong said they would take care of skinning and distributing the meat, so everyone else to go inside.

Jongho shifted and went straight to the bathroom and locked the door. He couldn't stop how much his hands were shaking and it make him feel so weak.

When he looked at himself in the mirror, he didn't recognize himself. While he had put on some weight since being under the Colonel's control, he still looked thin. His cheeks were hallowed out and when he glanced down, his collarbone was very pronounced.

Jongho closed his eyes and looked away. Seonghwa would try to force him to eat more than everyone else at each meal, which he did try to do, but he was used to eating such small portions or even not at all that if he ate too much it upset his stomach.

Just one more thing that hurt his confidence.

He turned to the shower and turned the hot water on all the way, then slide to the floor and buried his face in his knees while holding them to his chest with his arms.

.

.

.

.

_Mama?_

Yunho lifted his head off the bed and looked at his son. _What's the matter baby?_

 _I'm worried about Papa._ Theo walked over at sat on the edge of the bed.

 _What happened?_ Yunho felt his heart drop and he wanted to sit up to look at Theo better, but Wooyoung had just applied more medication to his back and it needed to soak in for almost an hour.

_He was off when hunting... He looked so sad... And I know he feels like he doesn't fit in anymore. I can feel his unease and hesitation. But even just taking down a buck wore him out. I don't know what to do to help him._

Yunho chewed on his bottom lip and let out a long sigh. _I don't think there's anything you can do baby. He needs to be able to do it himself. Papa...He's fighting a mental battle as much as a physical one._ He paused, thinking of something that could help. _Will you go find Uncle Youngie for me? I think he may be the only one who can help right now._

Theo nodded quickly and left the room.

Yunho closed his eyes and mulled over what he wanted to say. He knew that Wooyoung had been struggling with fitting in again too and that was part of the reason why he was so attached to Chan right now. His new baby seemed to keep him grounded.

He had been working with San and trying to come out of his bubble, but there was no hiding the fact that there were a few times that he still flinched when San took him by surprise.

Maybe he and Jongho could help each other find their place again. They had always been able to lean on each other for support in the past too, and according to their story about what happened at the battle, Wooyoung had been the one to help snap Jongho out of the mind control he had been under.

And once he was healthy again, Yunho would do everything he could to help his alpha too. He knew there was one thing they could count on to bring out the wolf within his alpha, but his back was too weak right now to handle anything like that. And with the small about of control Jongho would most likely have, there was no saying what would happen.

A few minutes later, Wooyoung walked back into the room and hurried to his side, followed closely by Theo. _What's wrong?_ He asked through their link so Theo could hear too.

 _I'm fine._ Yunho made sure to give him a reassuring smile. _But I need you to check on Jongho. Theo said he was struggling with the hunt today. I think you may be the only one who can help him since you both went through something similar..._

He could see the hesitation in the omega's eyes at the mention of what happened. _I don't know..._

_Please Wooyoung. We both know there are times that you are the only one who can get through to him. Even more so than me._

Wooyoung looked at him and the way his forehead creased told Yunho that the younger agreed with him. _Ok. I'll try._

.

.

.

.

Wooyoung didn't know how well this would work. He was having a hard enough time keeping himself under control. But he would do anything for Jongho. He always would.

So he followed Theo to the bathroom and just nodded at the beta in a form of dismissal.

Then he lifted his hand and knocked gently on the door. "Jongho?"

There was no answer.

He tried the handle and noticed that it was locked. Unsure of what else to do, Wooyoung went and found something small and thin that he could use to try and pick it. He had to work at it for a few minutes, but eventually he managed to trip the lock and was able to step into the bathroom.

Heat instantly blasted him and Wooyoung waved his hand in front of his face to try and clear out some of the fog that had formed from how hot the shower was.

His chest tightened when he saw Jongho curled up under the stream of water. "Jongho, are you ok?" He asked, feeling his voice crack a little.

The alpha didn't budge.

Even though Wooyoung knew he had his own things he still needed to work through, he didn't want Jongho to suffer anymore.

So he stripped down and went to kneel in the hot water with the alpha. It burned at first, but Wooyoung pushed himself through it and placed a hand on Jongho's arm.

The younger's head flew up in surprise and he stared at Wooyoung for a moment, trying to process what was happening.

Then tears started to roll down his cheeks and Wooyoung moved so that he was sitting against the wall so he could pull the alpha to him and cradle him in his arms.

The only time he moved was to turn the water off when it started to turn cold, but with the shower door shut the heat stayed in and kept them at a pleasant temperature.

When the sobs started to slow, Jongho rolled onto his side and wrapped his arms around Wooyoung's stomach so he could bury his face in the omega's chest.

Wooyoung lifted a hand up and ran it through the younger's wet hair. "Talk to me." He whispered.

"How am I supposed to fit in again?" The alpha whispered back, his voice even softer. "I'm not an alpha anymore... I can't contribute to this family like I used to..."

"Jongho, you will always be a part of this family. It's going to take time for everything to heal. But you can't shut us out. From the way the others make it sound, the sacrifice you made... It was to protect them. That's what a true alpha is meant to do. He will give up everything to make sure his family is safe."

"But I'm so weak... How could I let him control me like that."

Wooyoung moved to lift Jongho's head up so they could look at each other. "You're not weak. You were doing what you needed to do to survive. If you are weak, then what does that make me?"

He saw the pain reflected in Jongho's eyes and the alpha opened his mouth to start to protest. Wooyoung had heard it all before.

It wasn't his fault.

He was drugged.

It was planned out.

There was nothing he could have done.

It wasn't his fault.

But deep down, during those times the drug had started to fade, he should have put up for of a fight. He should have worked harder to remember everyone.

He was the weak one. And he didn't want to hear any excuses anymore. He knew he needed to work on getting past feeling that way, and that it would take time. But he was trying to lean on the others for support because he knew he couldn't do it alone.

And he wouldn't let Jongho go through it alone either.

So he cut off the alpha's protests by placed a finger over his lips. "No more arguing. We need to work on moving past it. But locking yourself in the bathroom and shutting us out isn't going to help. We obviously don't agree with each other's opinions about ourselves, so how about we do this." Wooyoung dropped his finger and Jongho moved so he could sit up. "Whenever we are feeling weak or like we don't belong, let's turn to each other. Ok?"

The alpha studied him for a long moment and Wooyoung could see the pain and sadness passing through them. He could tell that Jongho wanted to tell him that nothing was wrong with him.

"Use those words I know you are thinking and start telling them to yourself." Wooyoung cupped Jongho's cheek. "And I promise I will try to do the same."

"Ok. I promise." Jongho leaned forward and connected their foreheads. "Thank you, Woo. Thank you." He sighed.

Wooyoung smiled and inhaled slowly through his nose.

He told himself over and over that they could do this. And he knew he would do whatever it took to help break Jongho out of his shell.

 _How is he?_ Yunho asked him through a private link.

_Doing ok. He needs to be reminded of what it means to be an alpha more than anything, I think._

_Don't worry, I have plans for that. Once I'm healed. Thank you for always being there for us Youngie._

_You don't need to thank me. That's what we do for our family._


	42. 41

With the return of a form of financial income, Hongjoong was able to focus more on helping out the rest of the pack. He resumed passing on his knowledge to Riley and Gunner, which took some pressure off everyone else's back when it came for taking care of the energetic boys.

Lizbeth and Lorelai would still work on their studies every day, but they spent a lot of time with either Wooyoung or Seonghwa. Their omega energy helped to bring peace back to the girls. One evening when they had gone to bed, Avayla revealed that they had said they were scared of what would happen to them if Wooyoung or Seonghwa never came home.

And it was understandable. There were still enough alphas out there with messed up views of omegas that they would always be vulnerable if they didn't have anyone to protect them. Avayla had done her best to try and reassure them, but with her being pregnant and Theo's hearing condition, they had still been scared.

There was a lot of healing that needed to be done there and they had a hard time leaving Wooyoung and San alone.

That also caused issues with Chan, so the five of them had a lot to do.

Watching them try to come back together as a family unit was one of the few times Yunho was kind of glad he only had one kid. As much as it killed him to take the infertility treatment, he didn't know if would have been able to do any better than Theo.

His son had really grown in the few months they had been apart. He had been forced to come out of his shell and essentially take on the roll of being a Luna in a pack. It was something not as commonly practiced anymore, and Yeosang had never insisted on taking the title because he liked to share the responsibility with everyone. But with it being just Avayla and Theo as the eldest, it had happened naturally.

And now seeing him as a father himself was even more special.

Maria was a happy baby, always smiling at whoever was holding her. She had a very calming personality about her that helped ease the stress of rebuilding their pack.

Avayla took to motherhood well too and was constantly going to Seonghwa for advice on what she needed to do.

Yunho let out a long sigh as he settled into the giant bean bag chair that had been moved into he living room. It was the best thing to support his back at the moment and still allowed him to be with the others.

He was almost healed. Well, as healed as he could be. And he couldn't wait to get the ok from Wooyoung, because he had something he needed to do.

His alpha needed to have his wolf unleashed.

Jongho was tapping on the island in the kitchen nervously while waiting for Hongjoong to finish up with the kids. The two of them were supposed to go for a run with San for a bit. They were slowly working on building back up his stamina so that he didn't ware out as quickly.

It looked like he was putting on some muscle again, which made Yunho feel a little better, but it hurt to see just how timid his alpha was.

There had been more than one occasion that he had tried to force Mingi to take over as second in command, but each one ended with the older just walking away and pretending to ignore Jongho. That would often follow with a stern look from either Wooyoung or Hongjoong.

Yunho chewed on the inside of his cheek as he thought about what it was he wanted to do.

When the three alphas left, he pushed himself out of the bean bag and slowly made his way to Seonghwa's room. 

The omega's head turned to focus on him from where he was resting in bed. "Yunho! What are you doing up?"

"I'm fine Hwa." Yunho waved him off. "Youngie said it's good for me to stretch it. I wanted to talk to you about something, if you're feeling up to it?"

Seonghwa nodded and patted the bed next to him. He had taken to spending more and more time in bed the closer he got to his due date. The stress of the past six months had finally caught up to him and there was one morning he was afraid he had lost the baby because him abdomen hurt so much.

They still never figured out what had caused it... But he didn't want to take any chances.

"What's going on?" He asked while causally rubbing his stomach in slow circles.

"Ok..." Yunho exhaled sharply. "I know you and I have never really talked about, um, personal things before... But I wanted to ask what you like to do to get Mingi to get... you know... rough."

Seonghwa's eyes widened in surprise and his mouth opened a little. "Wh-What? Yunho, I-" He omega faltered and shook his head. "Are you serious?"

"Yes."

"That can't be good for your back..."

The beta nodded and waved his hand back and forth. "I know. I've thought about it I and honestly I don't care. Only because I think it would help Jongho. I think he needs to let his wolf out and really lose control in order to find it again."

The older's circles on his stomach became slower as he pondered Yunho's words. "You may be right... I don't remember if he ever really lost control during the fighting."

"No one seems to. So I don't know that he did, at least not when he was in control of himself. I want to set him off, and I know one of the best ways to do that is to have him claim me again." Yunho felt his embarrassment rising and knew that his ears had to be bright red.

"Well setting Jongho off is going to be completely different than Mingi. Honestly I just need to insult his pride and he goes ballistic. But Mingi has also always been very temperamental, so it's really not that hard to do." Seonghwa chuckled and a loving smile crossed his face. "Jongho is going to be a different story... I don't think it would work if you tried to show some dominance. That could make things a lot worse. And I feel like it would be easier for you if you were an omega and could use the smell of your slick against him... but that won't work either."

"Now you understand my dilemma." Yunho laid back on the bed and stared up at the ceiling. "I've thought about trying to make him mad, but I'm too worried about triggering something. We haven't really tried being intimate, and I know part of that is because of my back, but I can also sense that he isn't ready for it. My only fear is that if I wait until he is ready, then he may never be." His voice grew softer the longer he spoke and he could tell that he was on the verge of tears.

"We will figure it out. Have you tried talking to Wooyoung?" Seonghwa placed his free hand on Yunho's arm and gave a gentle squeeze.

"No. I already went to him to try and help Jongho stop beating himself up. I think it's helping a little, but I know that Wooyoung is dealing with his own recovery right now so I don't want to push him too much. He's struggling too. He doesn't hide it very well."

"No, he really doesn't." The omega pursed his lips. "I feel like he and San need to just take a moment to reconnect too."

"It's too hard with Chan." Yunho huffed and tilted his head to look at his friend. "I smell an alpha in the making with him. I feel like he learned to be protective in the womb with what Wooyoung was saying about him reacting to Caius trying to touch him during the pregnancy."

Seonghwa hummed and nodded his head. "Yeah, it's definitely a possibility."

"But I could also see him being a stronger omega like yourself. I know with Wooyoung's bloodlines there's a better chance of him being an omega, but who knows."

"Only time will tell."

The pair sat in silence for a long time as they contemplated everything that had been happening recently.

Laughter came from outside and Yunho tuned in to the fact that Theo was playing with the twins. He had always been a big brother to them, so it was nice to see that he would still take the time to chase them around whenever they asked him to.

He smiled and listened to them, and that smile grew when he heard Wooyoung shouting something about keeping the water off him. But then it sounded like he joined in on whatever it was they were doing.

"I think..." Seonghwa said, breaking the silence. Yunho turned his head to look at him again and waited. "I think that you should try appealing to the side of him that would want to claim you. Try to egg him on and get him to come forward. Push his buttons a little, but not in a way that he may take as insulting. I know it will be a fine line, but it will be worth a shot."

Yunho nodded slowly. "I was thinking about trying to get him away from the house too. Somewhere secluded and quiet."

"That would be good. You don't need any distractions. Just trust your instincts and I'm sure you'll be ok." Seonghwa gave him a reassuring nod and settled into his pillows.

"Thanks Hwa."

"Anytime honey." The omega mumbled. His breathing slowed to the point that Yunho knew he had dozed off, so he slipped off the bed and worked his way back to the living room.

San was sitting on the couch with Chan in his hands. The little boy was asleep, which explained why Wooyoung could be outside right now.

"Hey." Yunho whispered.

The alpha looked up and beamed. "Hey. How are you feeling?"

"Ok. It felt good to stretch out a little." Yunho said with a groan while lowering himself back into the bean bag chair.

"Good. I'm glad to hear that."

"How's little man doing?"

San looked back at his son. "He's perfect. Even if he does hate me sometimes."

Yunho chuckled. "I don't think he hates you. He just had a rough start to life. He'll get there. And really, he needs to get there because you and Wooyoung need some time alone together." He saw San's smile falter and his shoulders sink a little. "What?"

"I don't know if he wants to. I think he feels guilty about what happened..."

The beta chewed on his bottom lip. "Just help him through it. You have been through something similar before."

San just shook his head and closed his eyes. "This time is different."

Yunho knew exactly what he was talking about and felt his chest tighten a little. "He wasn't in his right mind. You both know that. Nothing will change the connection you have."

The alpha sighed and looked out the back door. Gunner and Riley had joined the fun and the pair of them were wrestling in their wolf forms with the twins while Theo watched.

Avayla and Yeosang were both sitting on the back porch watching while nursing.

Suddenly Wooyoung appeared in his orange and white wolf form and started leaping and bounding in circles. His yips could be heard even in the house and it brought a smile to both San and Yunho's faces.

Their bright and bubbly omega was slowly coming back.

"You're right. I'll make it happen." San said.

Then Chan stirred in his arms and started to babble and whine.

"Well, that was short lived." San chuckled and stood up. Chan started to cry and fling his arms back and forth. "Hang on little man, I'll take you to Mama. I know, I know." San muttered as he hurried outside.

Yunho watched as Wooyoung's head snapped to look at San and he shifted and dressed immediately so he could take his crying baby and comfort him.

He and San exchanged words that Yunho couldn't hear, but he saw San roll his eyes then lean over to nuzzle the side of Wooyoung's head. The omega giggled and leaned into the touch.

That motion right there told Yunho that they would be just fine. Their bond was strong enough they could get through anything.

Now he just needed to figure out how to bring his alpha back.


	43. 42

A couple of weeks later, Yunho was finally healed. Or at least back to the point where he had been before the fiasco with the Hunters. He knew there were still a few times that he would feel a twinge or it would seize up on him, but that was only if he put too much strain on himself.

With a green light from Wooyoung, who also had a teasing look on his face, Yunho when to go find Jongho.

His alpha was in the backyard sparring with Hongjoong and Mingi. The three of them were running through some exercises to help Jongho stay lose and concentrated.

But he was immediately distracted when he saw Yunho hurrying down the steps of the back porch. "What did he say?" The younger asked, running to his side.

A wide smile broke across Yunho's face and he wrapped his arms around Jongho's neck. "Let's go for a run."

Jongho cheered and swung his beta in a circle before turning back to the other two alphas. He didn't need to speak before the two them nodded and returned to the house.

Yunho was already stripping out of his clothes and leaving them on the deck by the time Jongho had started. He felt his chest puff out a little when Jongho paused to take him in, but it didn't go unnoticed when Jongho turned away and curled in on himself, as if trying to hide his body before shifting.

The beta let it go for now, but it was hard for him to contain his excitement at the idea of feeling his alpha again.

When they were both in wolf form, Yunho rubbed his body along the entire length of Jongho's several times, trying to get him excited too. He could feel his alpha leaning into the touch a little, which he took as a good sign.

Eager to stretch his legs, Yunho nipped at Jongho's tail and bounded away playfully.

The younger huffed and flicked it, but only trotted after his beta.

It made Yunho scowl and he repeated the action, earning him a slap on his nose. So Jongho was in one of those moods. Although that could be a good thing that Yunho could use to set him off.

Anxiety started to roll off Jongho as vanished into the trees and his movements were stiff. He was hiding his feelings again, but Yunho knew he was beating himself up for not being a 'good alpha'.

He knew he was going to push his luck, but he needed to try and force Jongho's hand. There was no other way around it. So he bounded forward and ducked his head down to nip at Jongho's leg. He pushed himself to the side and dodged around a tree when the alpha growled in warning. _Knock it off. I thought we were going for a run._

 _Well you're not running._ Yunho teased, springing in front of the alpha and lowering his chest to the ground while shaking his tail playfully.

Jongho turned his head away and sat down. _I'm actually not in the mood now. See if Woo or Mingi will go with you._

 ** _No._** Yunho snapped, standing up again. _I want to run with you._ ** _My alpha._** _The alpha who can't even look at me without turning his head away. The alpha who is hurting everyone else by beating himself up. The alpha who needs to_ ** _get his head out of his ass!_**

The younger's ears fell back, but he growled.

Yunho had struck a nerve. _Are you embarrassed to be around me? Is that what it is? I saw you turn away back there. Are you ashamed that your mate is a cripple?_ He dug his claws into the ground when he realized that his words had some of his deepest fears weaved through them. Because Jongho had been spending time with everyone but him, except at night, but even then they never truly slept together. Yunho had always been on his stomach while Jongho slept facing the wall.

 _No... That's not it at all._ Jongho lowered his head.

 ** _Well it sure feels like it!_** _Maybe I should just leave. Would that be better?_ Yunho stood up as straight as he could to tower over the alpha in front of him. He could see that Jongho was shaking. _Maybe you can convince San to share Wooyoung. I'll finally be out of the way, then you can be with your_ ** _precious omega._** He knew it was a low blow, but it was needed. **_Maybe he will even give you another pup._**

Jongho's eyes flashed red but Yunho forced himself to turn around. He was having a hard time keeping his own emotions in check now, which he found odd. He had never felt insecure out any of this, but now... After everything that had happened and how much Jongho had changed...

 ** _Where are you going?_** Jongho growled.

Yunho's first instinct was to stop and turn around, but hearing the command coming from his alpha meant things were going well. So he kept walking.

Branches snapped behind him and Jongho appeared in front of him. _What the hell Yunho? Where is this coming from? I don't understand... You know I don't want any of that._

 _Don't you? Because you sure as hell aren't making me feel good about myself right now._ Yunho turned and started walking toward the secluded area he had set up for them.

Jongho moved in front of him again and lowered his head. **_Stop walking away from me._**

**_Stop being a coward!_ **

The alpha stopped. His eyes flashed between brown and red several times.

He was almost there.

Yunho walked around him once more and worked to release some of his scent, wanting the alpha to latch onto him.

He could hear the alpha panting behind him and struggling to stay in control. Once Yunho stepped into the clearing, which he had laid blankets on, he turned around and shifted. " **Do it! Let go!** " He shouted, knowing that his eyes had to be the brightest blue they had ever been as his wolf begged for its alpha. " **Or else I will leave. And you'll never see me again. I'll go find an alpha who isn't ashamed of me.** "

That did it.

Jongho shifted and stormed forward. The power of his roar had Yunho falling to his knees. It was strange, he couldn't remember the last time Jongho had made him submit, if there had ever actually been a time... But he couldn't help but tremble with anticipation.

He tilted his head to the side out of instinct to show his neck and let out a small whimper when Jongho fisted his hair. " **How. Dare. You. You really think that's what I want? You think that's what I care about? How foolish can you be?! I have been by your side through everything!** "

If Jongho wasn't holding his hair, Yunho knew he would be flat on the ground right now in submission. The alpha was forcing his dominance out in waves and his eyes were so dark they were almost black. " **Then show me. Be the alpha I know you are.** "

Jongho growled but swallowed and closed his eyes.

There was just a moment of hesitation, so Yunho took matters into his own hands and reached up to grab Jongho's length in his hand. The alpha sucked in a harsh breath and seemed like he wanted to pull away at first, but Yunho started to stroke him.

He could feel his alpha getting hard at his touch and reached down to stroke himself at the same time.

Jongho tightened his grip on Yunho's hair and his face scrunched up to the point where Yunho couldn't tell if it was from pain or pleasure.

So he decided to test things a little more. " **Please. I need my alpha. So be the alpha that claimed me all those years ago.** " Yunho increased his speed, loving that his alpha was fully hard in his hand now. " **Make my yours again, or lose me forever.** "

Jongho snapped and pinned Yunho to the ground. Their lips were sealed together and the younger instantly started grinding their hips together. He was breathing quickly through his nose and his hands flailed for a moment while he tried to find Yunho's, which he pinned to the ground by his wrists.

The beta whimpered and rocked his hips as well, the friction pulling forward the heat in his stomach. He whimpered into the kiss and let his teeth graze against Jongho's tongue.

This made Jongho growl and attach his lips to the soft spot of Yunho's neck where it flowed into his jaw. He sucked hard, bringing forth a noticeable mark. Then he started to trail kisses down Yunho's neck, using his teeth occasionally.

" **Alpha...** " Yunho whimpered, arching his back off the ground.

" **Shut up.** " Jongho growled, pulling away to glare down at the beta. " **You wanted an alpha, you're going to get one.** " He released his grip on the beta's wrists and grabbed his hair once more before dragging him to be bent over between the alpha's legs. " **Suck.** "

There was no denying the order. Yunho felt a chill go down his spine as he parted his lips to take Jongho into his mouth.

He had known there was a possibility this would happen he forced Jongho's wolf out, so he wasn't going to complain or fight back. He needed to just let it happen.

Jongho didn't wait long before he started to thrust into Yunho's mouth, causing the beta's eyes to roll to the back of his head as he tried to relax his throat.

Spit dribbled out the corners of his mouth and Jongho held fast, doing all the work and thrusting at a brutal pace.

But he didn't stay in for long.

As soon as Jongho pulled back from Yunho's mouth, he forced the beta to the ground on his hands and knees. Low, deep warning growls came from the alpha, warning Yunho to stay put.

A hand pressed down on his back and forced his chest against the ground. Then it ran down his back, right over his scar, and the touch instantly became softer and more gentle.

Yunho closed his eyes and his chest vibrated in a light purr.

Then Jongho's hands found his waist and he squeezed hard before moving to grip his ass. He kneaded it several times before spread his cheeks apart and dipped forward to circle Yunho's entrance with his tongue.

The beta let out a low whine and fisted the blanket on either side of his head. He bit his tongue to keep from speaking, not wanting to anger his alpha further. But he did rock his hips a little, leaning into his alpha's tongue.

Jongho lapped at him constantly, doing the work that needed to happen to make sure he was as slick as possible. At one point, he added a finger next to his tongue and moved it back and forth to begin stretching him out.

Soon a second finger was added and Jongho pulled his face away to lean over and watch his beta. " **This is what you wanting, right? For Alpha to stretch you and breed you?** "

" **Yes Alpha. I want you so bad. Please fill me, claim me.** " Yunho begged, tears of frustration rolling from his eyes when Jongho slowed the movement of his fingers.

" **You insulted Alpha, why should I?** "

The deep rumble that came from Jongho's voice made Yunho tremble. " **Then teach me a lesson.** "

" **With pleasure.** " Jongho spat in his hand to try and lube his member up a little more, stroking it quickly before lining it up and pushing inside in one go.

Yunho cried out at the sudden stretch and tried to move forward out of instinct. His vision turned red from the pain, but he tried to push through it.

Jongho grabbed him by his shoulders and pulled him up so their bodies were pressed together. " **You're not going anywhere. You're MINE. MY beta. How dare you think about leaving me.** " He started to thrust his hips up at a brutal pace, pounding into Yunho to show that he was in control.

" **A-A-Al... P-P...** " The older couldn't even form any words. His pain was quickly replaced with a pleasure he hadn't felt in months and he was soon sobbing at how happy he was to be with his alpha.

" **Alpha needs you. You're never leaving.** " Jongho started to ramble his commands, trying to keep the dominating tone, but it was easy to see that he was getting lost in his pleasure. Hot tears rolled down Yunho's back and he tilted his head to nuzzle his nose against Jongho's cheek.

The alpha turned his head to lock their lips together once more while wrapping his arms around Yunho's chest and stomach. The beta then lifted his hands up to hold into his alpha's arms so they were as connected as possible.

It didn't take long for Jongho's knot to form and soon after burst inside of Yunho. He climaxed at the same time, completely untouched, and whimpered into their kiss at the feeling of how full he was.

Jongho broke their kiss and started to run his tongue back and forth over the mark on Yunho's neck, sending wave after wave of pleasure through him. It was heightened even more when he felt Jongho's teeth pierce the skin in the act of claiming him once more.

The sensation made Yunho cry out and his vision turned white. He tried to fight the position they were in and twist to gain access to Jongho's neck, and the alpha did the same. They both scrambled to follow the urges of their wolf, and when Yunho was able to, he reopened the mark on Jongho's neck as well.

The alpha sucked his lower lip into his mouth and whimpered while tears continued to roll down his cheeks.

Yunho nuzzled into him and brought a hand up to hold the back of Jongho's head, rubbing it gently. The alpha buried his face in Yunho's neck and his body shook while he let all his emotions out. "B-B.... I'm s-so sorry baby..." He mumbled, tightening his grip on Yunho's body.

"Jong, it's ok. That's why I wanted to do this. Do you feel better?" Yunho whispered.

Jongho just nodded into his neck and started to lower them to the ground. He wrapped his legs around Yunho's as well, locking him in place and showing complete possession over him. "You said you'd leave me..."

The beta snorted in response and patted Jongho's hands. "Now we both know that's not true. I needed you to unleash your wolf. You were suppressing it for too long and you needed to get it out."

"I didn't hurt you... Did I?"

Yunho rotated his shoulders and tried to bend his back a little. "No I don't think so. I've never felt better." He hummed and turned his head to look back at his alpha. "Are you back? For good?"

Jongho closed his eyes, but nodded. "I think so. I feel different now, like a wall has been knocked down to open up the room. Thank you..."

"You don't need to thank me. I love you Jongho. I love you with every fiber of my being, and I just want to know that you are ok. I don't like seeing you suffer."

The younger pressed his face into Yunho's neck once more. "I love you so much. Thank you for not giving up on me. I promise I will work harder for you to be the best alpha I can be."

"You already are baby, you just needed to realize it again. I couldn't ask for anyone better. All I want is you."


	44. 43

"Mingi! Get more towels!" Wooyoung shouted from the bedroom before turning back to where Seonghwa was laying on his bed.

The older omega groaned in pain as another contraction ran through his body and he tried to curl into himself.

This was the worst one. He had decided that as soon as his body had blown through the Braxton hicks and jumped straight into the real thing.

Little Trinity was ready to come, but she wasn't making it easy.

"Fuuuuuuck!" Seonghwa cried out. His head fell back on his pillow. "Youngie, why does it hurt so much?"

"I don't know, Hwa. Marylou, what's going on?" Wooyoung turned to the beta and she shook her head.

"I'm not sure, but he shouldn't be in this much pain..." She stepped forward and pressed her hands against Seonghwa's stomach.

Just that little bit of pressure made him cry out in pain. It didn't feel right. Trinity was trying to move inside him but it was like she wasn't turning all the way. Or she was taking her sweet time rotating.

Mingi entered the room a moment later and placed a stack of towels on the dresser before moving to his omega's side. "How are you doing love?" He brushed Seonghwa's sweat-soaked bangs away from his forehead.

The older just whimpered in response and leaned into Mingi's hand. "I'm ready for her to be here Min, I'm so ready..."

"I know baby." Mingi leaned over and kissed his forehead before sitting down and taking his hand. "She will be here soon."

Seonghwa's labor went on for a few more hours, to the point here he was hitting exhaustion and having a hard time staying awake. His vision blurred and it was hard for him to even squeeze Mingi's hand.

Avayla came in an out, torn between wanting to be with him and taking care of her daughter. Seonghwa tried to tell her to just stay out and take care of the others, but she would still come in to make sure he was ok.

Wooyoung worked to keep a constant stream of medicinal herbs burning in the room to help Seonghwa relax or to numb the pain. He even mentioned one that would help induce labor even further, but with where Trinity was sitting right now that didn't seem like a good idea.

After another hour of contractions and pain, Seonghwa felt himself slipping. They told him to rest when he could and that they would keep an eye on things, so he let himself fade away, hoping for a little relief and some much needed sleep.

.

.

.

.

Mingi was having a hard time keeping his emotions in check. He didn't like how much Seonghwa was struggling with this pregnancy, and from the looks on Wooyoung and Marylou's faces, they weren't happy either.

Once his omega had drifted off, he slipped off the bed and marched over to the pair and had to fight the snarl coming from his throat. "Talk. Now."

Wooyoung ran a hand over his face then up through his hair. "She's not turning."

"Yeah, I fucking know that! So what are you going to do about it?" Mingi clenched his fists. He could feel himself trembling as his wolf threatened to break free.

"If she doesn't turn in the next hour, we may need to get everything set up for surgery." The color left Wooyoung's face as he spoke.

Mingi just blinked at him. He had heard what the omega had said, but he wasn't quite processing everything. "I don't... What?"

"Mingi." Marylou placed a hand on the alpha's shoulder. "Trinity is still laying on her side. She isn't turning. Which means Seonghwa can't give birth naturally." She spoke slowly and focused solely on Mingi. "That also means we will need to prepare him for surgery, otherwise we could lose both of them."

Lose... his mate?

The alpha turned to look at where his mate was lying on the bed. His head was rocking back and forth while his forehead scrunched up in pain.

"I don't..." Mingi felt the words get caught in his throat and everything seemed to stop. It was like he was leaving his own body. He was numb.

"Mingi. Breathe." Marylou forced him to look back at her. "The only way this is going to work is if you stay calm and work with us."

"Ha..." Mingi swallowed and blinked several times. "Have you e-ever done this? Before?" He knew Wooyoung hadn't. Everything had always gone so smoothly when Maria was their midwife. Was this happening because she wasn't here? Or because Seonghwa was studied while pregnant?

Mingi's breaths started getting faster and faster and he placed a hand over his heart. It was beating a lot harder than he remembered it ever beating.

Was he going to lose his mate?

"No, I haven't." Marylou said. "But Tina is in town looking for someone right now. I sent her out a few hours ago just in case."

"And if she doesn't find someone, I have the books from Ultima." Wooyoung placed a hand on Mingi's arm. "I promise that if I have to do this, I will take every precaution I can."

At first, Mingi wanted to rip Wooyoung's head off for even suggesting that he could perform something like this that he had never done before, but the confident look in the omega's eye calmed his wolf a little. "Are you sure there's no other way?"

Wooyoung shook his head. "Not if Trinity won't work with us. There's no way to make her turn. Trust me, I looked." He flashed a quick, crooked smile.

Mingi appreciated that he was trying to lighten the mood, but there wasn't much that could help in this situation.

After a moment, the other two left the room to go tell the others what the plan was.

This allowed Mingi to go back to bed and pull Seonghwa into his arms. He dipped his head down and nuzzled the mating mark he had once forced on the omega, but was then earned by some miracle.

Suddenly there was so much that Mingi felt like he needed to say to Seonghwa. Like how beautiful he was, or how strong he was, or how he didn't want to lose him...

Tears welled up in his eyes and he continued the loving motion.

"Don't cry baby." Seonghwa whispered, lifting a hand up to rub it over Mingi's arm.

The alpha bit his lip and let out a small sob. "H-Hwa..."

"I know, I heard." His omega sounded so weak. "I thought this might happen. It's so much different than last time..."

"What if something happens?" Mingi mumbled into the older's neck. He hugged Seonghwa as tight as he dared and he never wanted to let go.

Seonghwa just hummed and tilted his head a little to give Mingi more access. "Don't go there. I'm sure it will be ok. I trust them. And if something did happen, I know they would take care of you."

"Please don't say that." The alpha's voice cracked as he spoke. "P-Please..."

"It's going to be ok." Seonghwa mumbled before drifting off again.

Mingi lifted his head up and another sob escaped him. Seonghwa was so weak he could barely keep his eyes open.

He looked at the door and shouted, "W-Woo... Wooy-young!"

The younger omega came running in and hurried to Seonghwa's side. He placed his hand on Seonghwa's forehead and cheeks. "It's time. And thankfully Tina just got back." Wooyoung ran from the room.

He returned a short time later with an older omega male who looked like he would normally have a kind smile, but right now it was set in a stoney face of concern. He had longer brown hair that framed his face and he was taller than Wooyoung. "This is him?" He asked.

"Yes." Wooyoung said, coming to stand next to him. "Mingi, this is Raymond."

The alpha eyed the man warily and kept his grip on on his mate.

"Mingi?" The omega asked while setting down the large bag in his hand. "I'm going to take good care of Seonghwa. I have performed deliveries like this a couple hundred times, so he's in good hands." He gave a kind, reassuring smile. "And I'm going to need your help too, ok?"

"How?" Mingi asked, his eyes flicking to Wooyoung.

"You are in tune with his senses. Can you wake him up for me please? And Wooyoung I need gloves, towels, and a table to set up on."

The younger nodded and once more ran from the room.

Mingi looked down at Seonghwa and shook him gently. His mate opened his eyes and groaned, curling in on himself when another contraction hit. "Shhhh, it's ok."

"M-Min..." He whimpered weakly.

"Yeah, I got here just in time. I'm going to keep this brief." Raymond pulled his hair back with a hair tie and crouched in front of Seonghwa to make eye contact. "Seonghwa, my name is Raymond and I'm going to deliver your baby, ok?" When he got a nod, he continued. "Now I have a special mixture I'm going to burn that is going to put you to sleep as well as numb the pain. It's not perfect, but it should keep you out for most of it. Mingi is going to be by your side the entire time so that he can keep me up to date on your pain level. You may not consciously feel it, but your body will still register the pain."

He turned around and grabbed a couple of pills and a bottle of water, which he handed to Seonghwa. "I also want you to take this. It's going to make it so that you won't bleed as easily so we can try to control your blood loss. This is not going to be easy on your body and you are going to be confined to your bed for several weeks once this is done. Does this all sound ok to you so far?" Seonghwa nodded. "Do you have any questions for me?"

"No. Just take care of my baby."

Raymond nodded and turned to face Wooyoung once he re-entered the room.

The next several minutes were a blur to Mingi. He was moved to the side for a moment while Seonghwa was prepped. He was helped out of bed and special sheets were placed on it and he was stripped down and a disinfectant mixture was rubbed over his skin.

The older omega talked them through everything. He explained that the mixture was to protect Seonghwa's health. He also coached Mingi on what he needed to feel for and when to let Raymond know to stop or change what he was doing.

Both Marylou and Wooyoung were in the room to help with the surgery and everyone in the pack opened their bond to show their support for the omega.

Their strength helped Mingi with his confidence too as he gave Seonghwa a short but passionate kiss while the herbs started to burn. "I'll see you on the other side." He whispered, rubbing their noses together.

"I love you." Seonghwa said right before he lost consciousness.

Then everything started at a fast pace.

Raymond worked with precision and urgency, something that Mingi quickly found that he appreciated.

It killed him to watch Seonghwa's stomach be sliced open, and he could feel the pain coming from his mate's body, just like he was told he would.

Every so often, he would give the omega an update on Seonghwa's levels, but otherwise he remained silent and kept his focus on Seonghwa's face.

He tuned out everything he could afford to, not wanting to hear about potential blood loss, or making sure to be careful, or handing over another towel.

All he cared about was making sure Seonghwa was ok.

The only time his attention was drawn away from his mate, was when he heard his daughter crying.

Mingi's head flew up and he saw Raymond handing the screaming girl over to Wooyoung, who worked quickly to start cleaning her off after the umbilical chord was cut.

"Alright, we are in the home stretch." Raymond glanced at Mingi and nodded before he finished with the procedure.

His final steps were meticulously sewing up Seonghwa's stomach and making sure that he was all situated before he stepped back and started to clean his hands. "Ok. I think we are in the clear. How is he doing?"

Mingi connected his forehead with Seonghwa's and closed his eyes. His mate was in so much pain, but it felt... stable. "I think he's going to be ok."

Raymond nodded and smiled down at where Wooyoung was rocking Trinity back and forth. "A healthy little girl. Congratulations."

"Th... Thank you. How can we every repay you?" Mingi asked, feeling his chest get tighter.

"I'm just happy I could help. I'll come back and finish cleaning up in a bit. He should wake up shortly, once I take the herbs from the room and put them out. You did well today young man." The omega bowed his head and spoke softly to both Wooyoung and Marylou, earning wide smiles from them, before leaving the room.

Trinity started to fuss again and Wooyoung walked to Mingi's side of the bed. "Here's Daddy, he's right here."

Mingi turned so he could hold his little girl in his arms. She settled down once she sensed him and stared at him with big eyes. Seonghwa's eyes, although they hadn't adapted his color yet. She had Seonghwa's face too, but it looked like she might have inherited Mingi's nose, mouth, and ears. And she had a dark head of hair too.

She was beautiful. Absolutely stunning.

He was so happy just staring down at her that he didn't notice Seonghwa watching him until Trinity tilted her head to look at him.

"Hwa! Oh my god, baby are you ok?" Mingi rubbed his head and leaned over.

"No. Everything hurts... So much... But is Trinnie ok?"

Mingi couldn't help but laugh. "Trinnie?"

"Shush you." Seonghwa groaned, but he smiled. "Everything went ok?"

"I think so. I honestly don't remember most of it, I was so focused on you." Mingi gazed at him a moment longer before carefully handing Trinity over so she could lay on Seonghwa's chest.

The omega gave a tired smile and placed a hand on her back. "She's perfect." He whispered.

"She really is baby." Mingi laid down next to him mate and pressed their body's together, enveloping his mate as much as he could.

Once more he started to nuzzle the mark on Seonghwa's neck. "I love you so much. Thank you for being so strong, I don't think I could continue on without you."

"My silly alpha." Seonghwa murmured. "Of course you would, for our kids. But I would never leave you willingly. You're... my everything..."

Mingi tilted his head and saw that Seonghwa had fallen asleep again. He let out a small sigh and held his family close to him to keep watch over them. His need to protect his omega kicked into overdrive in Seonghwa's weakened state, so he settled in so he could be there when his mate woke up once more.


	45. 44

With four kids in the house all under one, everything was a different kind of chaos. Most of the pack didn't sleep throughout the night anymore and the four sets of parents were always tired.

Yunho and Jongho did everything they could to help out around the house since they were the only ones who didn't have a baby to directly care for.

Riley, Gunner, and the twins also stepped up where they could.

Gunner especially took to his role as a big brother. He did everything that Seonghwa asked him too and was very attentive and loved sitting with Trinity when she was old enough to sit up on her own.

And it was easy to see that she adored her brother already too. She would look for him whenever Seonghwa or Mingi carried her into the room and would instantly cry out for him while making grabby hands.

It melted Seonghwa's heart whenever he saw them interacting. It also took a little stress off his shoulders.

His recovery had been a long one. It had been hard enough for him to even attempt to nurse Trinity and stay conscious, so Avayla and Mingi had to help him through it most of the time while he was on bed rest.

Raymond came to check on him every day and make sure that his incision was healing.

There was no way that it wouldn't, though, because Mingi's overprotective switch flipped and he refused to let Seonghwa get out of bed unless he needed to use the bathroom.

By the time he was cleared to return to every day activities, it took Mingi another week to allow him to lift so much as a plate. All he could do was walk around and sit.

Seonghwa's patience was getting thin and there were several times he had snapped at Mingi in front of everyone. His alpha's rage would spike as well and the two of them needed to be separated before a fight would break out between the two of them.

Or... before Mingi slammed him against the wall and fucked him right there because that was something they were both dying to do.

The fact that they had been separated physically for six months, then they had to wait because Seonghwa was still pregnant and they needed to reconnect as a pack, and then Seonghwa was on bed rest for a couple more months, they were both chomping at the bit to get at each other again.

Seonghwa especially was starting to feel the urge more and more as time went by.

There were times that he could distract himself, like when he went through the ups and downs of watching a new house being built for Avayla and Theo to move into.

The idea of his daughter 'moving out' to live on her own made him so proud and sad at the same time. She had grown into a fine young woman and an even better alpha.

It was almost funny, there had been a short time that she had a hard time releasing control of the kids to Hongjoong when they first came home because her alpha instincts were so high.

That was part of the reason she wanted her own area.

Seonghwa sighed while washing dishes one day. He knew he was zoning out while staring out the window, but he was drifting into a dangerous daydream.

One where he was watching Gunner leave home too.

"Precious, don't do this to yourself." Mingi's deep voice broke through his thoughts. His arms wrapped themselves around Seonghwa's waist and held him tight. "I can feel your anxiety. That is still several years away."

"You always know where my mind is." Seonghwa hummed and let his head fall back on Mingi's shoulder.

"I know what else has been on your mind too." The alpha adopted a growl. He tilted his head and started sucking on a tender part of Seonghwa's neck.

The omega whimpered and dug his fingers into the side of the sink. "M-Mingi..."

He got a growl in response and Mingi sucked a little harder.

There would definitely be a mark there a little later, but Seonghwa didn't care. He could feel himself grown hard and slick starting collect between his thighs.

"M...Mingi... The others." Seonghwa's breathing increased, especially when his alpha started to grind against him.

"Are out hunting and patrolling. The babies are all napping or on the other side of the house. I took care of everything."

Seonghwa gulped, but his wolf sprang forward and suddenly he was pushing them away from the counter and dragging Mingi to their bedroom.

The door was slammed and locked behind them and Seonghwa spun around to face the younger. He jumped up and Mingi caught him by his thighs while their lips connected in a heated and hungry kiss.

" **Alpha. Alpha I need you so bad.** " Seonghwa whimpered between kisses. He was already rotating his hips and grinding against Mingi and he loved the way Mingi's hands felt while squeezing his thighs.

The alpha groaned and walked toward the bed before turning so he could sit on it.

Seonghwa adjusted to straddle him and fisted the dark head of hair on front of him. His head tipped back, exposing his neck for Mingi to attack.

Mingi also slipped a hand down the back of Seonghwa's pants and started to trace circles around his entrance. He growled and pulled his head back. " **Fuck, so wet for Alpha already?** "

The omega nodded and pulled Mingi into another kiss. He opened his mouth immediately and let their tongues swirl together. He had been waiting for this for so long.

He was ready for his alpha to ruin him.

Mingi pulled back from the kiss, gasping for air, and started to rip off both of their shirts. His eyes were bright red and seemed to glow while watching the fabrics of Seonghwa's shirt pull apart.

Seonghwa couldn't help but roll his eyes and smack his alpha's chest. "Was that really necessary?"

" **Every second of it.** " Mingi growled while spinning them around so that Seonghwa's back was pressed against the bed. He made quick work of the omega's pants, pulling all his clothes off at once and running his hands back up Seonghwa's quivering legs.

Then Mingi bent over him and started kissing and sucking along his collarbone, working to make Seonghwa squirm beneath him.

Every touch was so long overdue and Seonghwa felt his need rising at a rapid rate. He wrapped his arms around Mingi's broad shoulders and dragged his finger's down the younger's back. It earned him a deep groan that had Seonghwa smirking.

When he reached Mingi's ass, he squeezed both cheeks hard and heard Mingi suck in a breath. "Fuck, Hwa."

"That's what I'm waiting for you to do." Seonghwa purred before extending his neck so he could run his tongue over the mark on Mingi's neck.

The alpha seemed to freeze for just a moment, then he stood up so he could finish undressing himself.

Seonghwa, in the meantime, pushed himself back on the bed so he was resting in the middle. He gave his alpha a very sultry look while leaning back to support himself on one hand. The other one he used to start stroking himself, groaning at the feeling, and he spread his legs wide.

Mingi's mouth opened a little and he stood in place, admiring the view.

Wanting to give his alpha a little more of a show, Seonghwa laid back and slipping his hand behind him to start teasing his own entrance while continuing to stroke himself. A whimper escaped him and his back arched off the bed.

Just the look Mingi was giving him right now was enough to make him tip over the edge. But Seonghwa knew he had to control himself.

When his alpha still didn't move, he slipped a finger inside. His slick was already pooling beneath him so the intrusion was smooth.

And it felt so damn good.

He could feel himself getting more and more worked up. The pleasure made him twist on the bed. His wolf churned within him, begging for his alpha's attention. " **Alpha... Please.** " He begged, looking at Mingi with hooded eyes.

It was like Mingi was snapped out of a trance. He dove forward and forced Seonghwa's legs further apart, groaning as he watched the omega continue to finger himself.

" **Look at you. All worked up and dripping for Alpha.** " Mingi let his hands slide to the backside of his omega's thighs and lifted his hips off the bed.

Seonghwa let out a little yelp of surprise and his finger slipped out of him when he tried to grab onto something.

But Mingi held him up so that he wouldn't fall.

Then gave him even more.

The alpha kept Seonghwa partially lifted off the bed and in a place that he only had to bend over a little to drag his tongue across Seonghwa's wanting entrance. He groaned and repeated the motion several times, lapping up Seonghwa's slick.

He worked his tongue in occasionally, diving in as deep as he could get and working Seonghwa up even more.

"Fu-! **Alpha, please! I ca... I can't!** " Seonghwa cried out once Mingi started fucking him with his tongue. He hooked Seonghwa's legs over his shoulders so he could use his hands to spread the omega's cheeks apart and give him more access.

The feeling was too much, especially when Mingi started to add a finger from each hand.

Seonghwa shouted at the top of his lungs while cumming hard. White strings splashed across his chest and even landed on his chin and face. Stars dotted his vision, and he barely registered Mingi setting him down and licking everywhere his cum had landed.

"Baby..." The older panted. "So good... Your tongue... Mingi..." He couldn't even form full sentences.

"Stick with me precious." Mingi chuckled, cupping his face.

Then he started to kiss down Seonghwa's chest and stomach, paying special attention to the scar that now went from hip to hip.

Seonghwa slowly came down from his high and tilted his head while looking down at his alpha. He smiled gently and ran his hands through Mingi's hair.

" **My beautiful, perfect, stunning, precious omega.** " Mingi's eyes flicked to his and he pressed yet another kiss to his scar.

Seonghwa hummed at the praise and closed his eyes. He rubbed Mingi's head for another moment but then he started to wiggle his hips.

Mingi got the message and chuckled before sitting up. He scooped up some of Seonghwa's slick and rubbed it over his own length.

Ready for more, Seonghwa spread his legs once more and bit his lip.

His alpha growled in response and lined himself up. He pushed himself in, going slightly faster than normal but still slow enough to try to allow Seonghwa to get used to the stretch.

When Seonghwa nodded, Mingi pulled out and slammed back into him.

Now that they were connected like this again, he started to thrust faster and faster.

The omega pulled him down to kiss him, wanting to feel Mingi's lips against his own.

Their bodies rubbed together, the accumulated sweat helping them to move in sync. They became a tangled mess of limps, occasionally rolling onto their sides from the passion that when into their love making.

When Mingi's knot began to form, Seonghwa could feel his climax building again. He whimpered into their kiss and clung to Mingi, digging his nails into the younger's back.

The moment it burst within him, they both cried out and let their orgasm crash into them.

They tilted their heads and nuzzled each other's marks, loving how close they finally felt to each other again. It was a perfect moment for them to reconnect as mates.

Something neither one of them ever wanted to take for granted.

They were in this for life, however long that ended up being. Seonghwa had felt so empty without his alpha's touch. He couldn't picture his life without Mingi.

The alpha was everything to him and he made him the happiest omega alive. In his opinion at least.

Seonghwa let out a low, rumbling purr while continuing to scent his alpha. "Mingi..." He whispered.

The younger tightened his grip and sighed. "Precious. God I love you so much. You're as beautiful as the first day I met you."

"Don't go getting all sappy on me now." Seonghwa chuckled and teased the hair on the back of Mingi's neck. "I'll tell the others."

"You wouldn't dare. I have an image I need to keep up."

"Mhmm. I know you do. The alpha who is whipped for his omega."

Mingi let out a little whine and buried his face in Seonghwa's neck. "You're ruining the moment." He grumbled.

Seonghwa smiled and nuzzled into his alpha.

They held onto each other through the entire time that Mingi's knot was still connecting them, and long after that as well.

There were many whispered words of love and praise, joined by rubbing noses and gentle kisses that lasted well into the afternoon.

The only thing that got them out of bed was the cries of their youngest daughter, but even so they couldn't be mad about it.

They both went to her together and Mingi let Seonghwa lean into his chest while he nursed their precious girl.

Mingi kissed the top of his head and gazed lovingly down at their beautiful girl. "I love you, Hwa. Now, and forever."

The omega tilted his head back and accepted one more kiss before he whispered, "Me too, Mingi. I love you so much."


	46. 45

San let out a little sigh while watching Wooyoung lay Chan down for a nap. Even at almost a year old, his son still preferred Wooyoung over him, no matter how much he tried to bond with the boy.

He didn't mind, to some extent, because he knew that could change when Chan grew and became more aware of everything.

Part of him also found it impressive that he was showing signs of being traumatized by what happened with Caius even from the womb.

And Wooyoung was protective over him too. The second their son started to fuss for any reason, Wooyoung was there in a second to take care of him.

They had a different bond now, and it was one that San couldn't help but feel a little jealous of.

The twins had taken to being big sisters splendidly. They would sit and play with Chan when he was learning to sit up and they were trying to teach him to crawl.

He seemed to learn more by watching Rhodey, and even Maria and Trinity were trying to learn as well.

They were all growing so quickly.

"Alright my sweet boy. Get some sleep and Mama will feed you when you wake up." Wooyoung rubbed Chan's dark hair and smiled down at him.

He was the only one that hadn't inherited blonde hair from either Wooyoung or San, so his dark brown hair must have come from someone else in their family. But other than that it looked like he was going to be almost an exact copy of San, minus his eyes.

His gold flecks were even more prominent than Lizbeth's, proving that he had inherited the Ultima bloodline.

Wooyoung had once voiced that maybe his were brighter because he was more inside the magic embrace of the pack, and that seemed to make sense to everyone else.

Once he was done saying goodnight, Wooyoung turned around and gave San a gentle smile. "He will get there."

"I know." San held out his hand, which Wooyoung took right away, and pulled his omega from the room and into their room. "Youngie?" His voice got a little smaller and he looked at Wooyoung with a slight pout.

His wolf churned within him, wanting his omega's attention.

And the younger knew what he wanted, as he always did. A wave of guilt flowed off him and Wooyoung bowed his head.

"Please, please Youngie. I can't..." Tears came to San's eyes and he buried his face in Wooyoung's neck while wrapping his arms around his waist. "I know you feel guilty, but I don't care about that. I never, ever have. It wasn't you."

Wooyoung fisted the back of his shirt. He could feel the omega trembling. "I know... But..."

"But nothing. I need you." San pulled away and caressed Wooyoung cheek. "I've been so patient, and I will keep being patient, for you." The alpha knew he was getting very close to whining, but he couldn't take it anymore.

Everything seemed to be falling into place... For everyone but him.

Even Jongho was doing better ever since Yunho had forced his wolf out. Now the two of them were inseparable and the alpha had a healthy glow to him.

Wooyoung let out a long sigh and stepped back. "I'm sorry, Sannie. I don't know why I feel this way..."

"Because you are still blaming yourself. And you need to stop." The older said, feeling his voice getting a little harsh. But then it grew softer and he looked down at the ground. "Do you not want me anymore? Was... Was he better?" His chest constricted and he felt a sob threatening to tear loose from his throat.

"Wh-What?" Wooyoung's eyes widened and he shook his hand. "S... San... How could you? I don't... Why?" He sounded offended and he took a step back.

"Because it's been over a year since we've been together and you've shown no signs of wanting it!" San clenched his fists, not caring about the pain that reflected in his omega's eyes.

Maybe he couldn't be patient anymore.

"Because I'm scared!" Wooyoung yelled at him. "What's so wrong with that?!"

"Scared of what exactly?" San narrowed his eyes. "Of me? Of it not being enough? Of wanting that bastard over me?"

Wooyoung flinched but snapped at him. "I don't know! And it's killing me! I don't feel like I belong anywhere! Like part of my loyalty still lies with Ultima because they fucking brain washed me!" Tears started to pool in his eyes. "And no one seems to understand that! I do everything that I can to step up and take care of the pack because it's in my nature not only as an omega, but in my bloodline. But I just... I don't know!"

San could feel his confusion rolling off him and he pulled Wooyoung into another hug. "Then let me help you baby. Let me love you, please."

It took a moment, but Wooyoung nodded.

Not wanting to give him a chance to change his mind, San pulled him over to the bed and started to slowly strip them of their clothes.

Wooyoung would make small whimpering sounds whenever San's fingers grazed his skin, and the older could see him struggling with something internally. From what he could sense, Wooyoung was feeling incredibly nervous but there was part of him that was excited.

And he decided to use that.

San placed his hand on the back of Wooyoung's head and pulled him into a kiss. The omega tensed up for a moment, but then he closed the rest of the distance between them and ran his hands up San's back.

Their hardening lengths rubbed together and San had to work very hard not to continue grinding into him.

Although that didn't stop Wooyoung.

Now that their lips were connected, something unlocked inside Wooyoung and he turned them around so that San fell back onto the bed, pulling the younger with him.

Wooyoung threw his arms out to catch himself so he didn't land on top of San directly, but he lowered himself down so their chests were pressed together.

San twisted their legs together and ran his hands down Wooyoung's back, then lower to cup his ass. His wolf purred with delight and San kneaded his hands slowly.

It made his omega shiver and start to rotate his hips a little. After a few moments, a powerful lavender scent started to fill the room and San shifted his hand to the side and groaned when he felt the slick pouring out of Wooyoung.

"Sannie..." The younger sighed, moving to placed hungry kisses along San's jaw. "Sannie, I'm so sorry."

"I know." San whispered, angling his neck and enjoying the attention Wooyoung was finally giving him. He could tell the kisses were desperate and the omega's way of trying to work through things.

What surprised him the most was when Wooyoung dipped down and started to suck on one of his nipples.

San gasped at the instant pleasure that shot through his body and he arched his back of the bed. 

The younger rolled his other nipple between his thumb and forefinger. San tilted his head back and response and dug his fingers into Wooyoung shoulders.

His omega hummed, indicating how happy he was right now.

San knew that Wooyoung just needed to let him in.

He grabbed his mate's chin and brought him up to kiss him once more, wanting to taste him. Even after all these years, Wooyoung would always be the best tasting thing he could ever experience. He would never get tired of kissing him.

Over the past few months they would exchange a quick kiss here an there.

But it was nothing like this.

Now it was all teeth, tongue, moans, and desperate attempts to bring their bodies even closer together.

San rolled them over so he was on top and slipped a finger down to slip into Wooyoung's entrance, but the omega batted him away. "No. I can't wait." He said.

San tilted his head. "Are you sure?"

Wooyoung nodded and pulled San to him again. "I want to feel everything. All of you. The pain, the pleasure. Everything. Bring me back to you San."

The alpha groaned as their tongues tangled together and he slipped his length between Wooyoung's cheeks so he could rut against him for a minute and collect his slick.

Then he maneuvered his hips so that he could press against his omega's entrance and started to push inside.

Wooyoung whimpered and tensed around him, but his slick helped for San to enter him smoothly.

San had to resist the urge to thrust his hips forward the rest of the way, but it was oh so tempting. He wanted to feel Wooyoung completely lose himself beneath him and beg for his knot.

But he also wanted to show him just how much he loved him and that he was still the most precious thing in his life.

He started to pepper kisses all over Wooyoung's face, making sure to get his nose and eyes and cheeks. It made the omega giggle and relax a little, which allowed San to get a little deeper. He smirked and continued doing it, to the point where Wooyoung was laughing and trying to push San's face away.

The alpha took advantage of this and grabbed Wooyoung's hands. He laced their fingers together but also pinned them to the bed. " **Trying to push Alpha away?** " He growled, running his tongue over Wooyoung's mark.

He felt his mate shiver and there was a slight twitch of fear for a moment, showing his reaction to San's wolf. But when he raised his head to check on Wooyoung, he was happy to see bright gold irises staring back at him.

" **Never.** " Wooyoung lifted his head up and licked the tip of his alpha's nose. " **Now are you going to fuck me or not?** "

San's stomach flipped and he couldn't hold himself back anymore. He started to thrust into his omega at a quick pace, using his pinned hands as a way to keep him in place.

The younger let out a long moan and tilted his head back while his mouth opened. San took advantage of the new angle and kissed the point of Wooyoung's jaw, then his Adam's apple, which he sucked on for a long moment.

The sound that Wooyoung made had to be one of the sexiest things San had every heard. It was a mixture of a groan and a growl and it just made San want to suck harder.

But he decided to pull back so he could see his mate's face.

Wooyoung strained against his grip, trying to free his hands. He even whined a little, which made San laugh and press another kiss to his lips.

He thrust his hips forward several more times and felt his knot start to form. When Wooyoung's whimpers got a little higher, he released one of Wooyoung's hands so he could reach down and stroke his omega, bringing him to his climax right as his knot burst.

The pair wrapped their arms around each other and buried their faces in each other's neck as the basked in in their high.

"Sannie."

"I know. I love you too." San chuckled, brushing his lips along Wooyoung's neck. He also let his finger drag up his omega's side, earning a shiver and a sigh. "You know, there was a time I thought I had lost you. But I never gave up. I held onto our connection, as much as I could, because I know that you're mine, and I'm yours."

Wooyoung hummed and ran his hands through the older's hair. "There were times it never felt right. Part of me always seemed to know it, but I was never... strong enough... But now that I think back..." He paused and San lifted his head up to look at him. "It was never you. And I'm so s-"

San placed a finger on his lips. "Don't. It's all ok, and it has been for a long time. I'm just happy to see you back where you belong. Beneath me."

"Hey!" Wooyoung tried to push his hand away, but San just replaced it with is lips.

Both of their chests vibrated in a low purr and they slowed things down, enjoying the feeling of being connected in every way possible.

"You know it's true." San whispered. He caressed Wooyoung's cheek and loved the way his omega glowed at the attention.

"What if I don't like being beneath you. I am an all mighty omega leader you know."

"Who still needs an alpha to knot him and see to all his needs."

Wooyoung glared at him. "I could get along just fine without you."

San tilted his head back and laughed. "Now that you finally have me inside you? I don't see you lasting three days before you are begging me to take you away and fill you." He smirked when a blush appeared on his omega's cheeks. "Maybe we should pay our bean bag chair a visit one night. I bet it's feeling neglected."

"You are so full of yourself."

"But you love me anyway." A wide smile crossed San's face that creased his eyes and showed off his dimples. He rubbed their noses together.

"I must be crazy." Wooyoung giggled and pressed a kiss to the mark on San's neck. "But I do. Thank you for never giving up on me San."

"And?"

"And... I love you, so very much."


	47. Epilogue

The sky couldn't be more blue than it was one day in the middle of summer. It was the kind of sky that held the promise of life, hope, and love.

It was also the kind of sky that made it so that it was impossible to stay inside.

Which is why the large yard behind the pack house was bustling with activity.

Over the past several years a lot of changes had been made to the beautiful log building that Hongjoong's pack had called home.

Avayla and Theo had their own house situated on a separate part of the territory, and the pack was now working on building a couple of other houses to expand their home and give their kids the option to live on the territory as well.

Several trees had been cut down to use for building materials, but they had left enough of the trunk behind that they had natural tables dotting the yard.

A modest pond had been dug into the ground and a fountain had been installed to keep the water fresh and circulating.

And right now, a few more tables were set up and several chairs were being spread out across the large yard.

Hongjoong surveyed the area, his chest swelling with pride as he watched his family work together to make everything was perfect for when their guests arrived.

His beta came up behind him and looped an arm around his waist. "I think we are just about there. Is the meat ready?"

"Yes." Hongjoong pressed a kiss to the side of Yeosang's head. "Mingi and Jongho are getting it now."

They turned to see the two alphas coming out of their storage with armfuls of cut elk and deer.

Seonghwa was standing in front of their large grill, watching it carefully to make sure it reached the perfect temperature.

Avayla was standing next to him, as soft smile on her face. The conversed quietly and she laughed when Seonghwa bent over to speak gently to the round belly the alpha was sporting.

A few moments later, Theo came walking out of the kitchen carrying a large tray of sliced fruits and vegetables. He placed a quick kiss on his alpha's cheek before going to meet Yunho at one of the large tables. The two betas worked quickly to lay everything out, making sure all the food was accessible from all directions.

"Do you know when they will be here?" Yeosang took Hongjoong's hand and started walking to one of the tables.

"I'm not sure, Riley and Gunner left a little under an hour ago, and the twins shortly after them so I'm assuming they should be back shortly." Hongjoong smiled down at where he was holding Yeosang's hand.

"Dad!"

The alpha turned around and smiled when he saw his youngest son running straight for him. Rhodey was growing up to be a mini Yeosang, right down to the fact that he was a beta as well. "What is it?"

"I'm hungry! When do we get to eat?"

Hongjoong scooped down and picked the eight year old up, laughing as he did. "Soon! We need to wait for everyone to arrive."

Rhodey let out a dramatic sigh and started to wiggle in Hongjoong's arms. "Fiiiiiiine. I'm gonna go find Trinnie."

The alpha set Rhodey down and watched as he sprinted over to the side of the house where Trinity was sitting in the grass staring at the gate.

Maria also came over to join them. She walked with a natural grace that she had inherited from her mother, although she had the gentle soul of the beta she was named for. Which was perfect because she was a beta as well.

Trinity turned and gave her a smile while taking her hand. Despite being Seonghwa and Mingi's daughter, she had only inherited a little of their sass. And she was the sweetest omega among all the surrounding packs.

The three of them sat together off to the side, staying out of the way like they had been asked.

That left just one kid unaccounted for, although Hongjoong knew where he would be.

When he glanced over at the pond where blankets were being laid out by San and Wooyoung, Chan was right by his mom's side. Just like he had always been growing up.

He was a peculiar boy to say the least. Chan had come out at the age of five as an alpha, which was early by a couple of years. And while he eventually bonded with San and adored his dad, he was a mommy's boy through and through.

Chan tended to spend more time with Wooyoung than the other kids his age, although he did still show signs of being protective over them seeing as he was the only alpha in their little sub group.

For awhile, Hongjoong worried that Chan's relationship with Wooyoung was going to cause issues for the pack. When growing up, he would throw tantrums if Wooyoung ever had to leave the house and needed to leave him behind. He ended up being destructive sometimes too.

Oddly enough, Jongho was the only one who could calm him down when that happened if his parents weren't home. Not even the twins could, although Chan adored them too.

The pack guessed it was because Wooyoung and Jongho still had a connection with each other. Even though they hadn't been mated in a long time, they still drew on each other for strength. Even the simplest touch could ease the other's worry, stress, or pain.

Chan had picked up on that at an early age, so everyone teased him that Jongho was his favorite uncle.

He was still a cheerful boy though, and when he smiled he looked just like San.

"What are you thinking, love?" Yeosang asked, pulling him into a hug.

The alpha gazed at his beta and kissed his forehead. "We did it. I had always promised you a big family after our pack was destroyed in the war. Are you happy?"

"Of course I'm happy, Joong." Yeosang moved closer so he could rest his head on Hongjoong's shoulder. They both watched as Chan ran over to join the other three kids and hopped up and down in place.

"They must be here." Hongjoong rubbed Yeosang's back and then stepped forward.

The rest of their pack gathered around them and watched as Riley came through their back gate holding hands with his beautiful beta girlfriend behind him. She had long, curly brown hair and a very petite body that made her a very quick and lethal hunter. The most stunning thing about her, however, was the fact that she had naturally purple eyes.

Riley had fallen for her instantly when her pack settled down a few miles away and her parents had come over to introduce themselves to Hongjoong once they realized he was 'in charge' of the surrounding area.

"Hi Jade." Yeosang walked forward to pull her into a hug while Chan ran up to Riley's side and tugged on his shirt. He really looked up to both Riley and Gunner when it came to learning to be an alpha.

"Hey squirt." Riley teased while ruffling his hair.

Chan glared at him, but then said, "Did you do it?"

Riley's eyes widened and he left Jade talking to Yeosang and pushed Chan off to the side.

Hongjoong tilted his head to the side and focused in on them, trying to figure out why Riley had a panicked look on his face.

Although he thought he knew. And even though it made his heart heavy at the thought of it, he knew it was bound to happen eventually.

Yeosang met his eyes and a sad emotion rolled off his mate. He understood too.

Riley was going to leave them once he mated with Jade to take over her pack. He deserved it, and he was born for it. Hongjoong had been training him to be a head alpha for years now.

He watched as Riley ruffled Chan's hair again and then stood to greet Gunner. His best friend gave him a wide, Mingi resembling grin before turning and dragging his reluctant omega Trenton through the gate.

They made quite the interesting couple. Trenton had grown up in a valley some distance away and Gunner had come across him when out on patrol when he had been immobilized by his heat when both boys were fifteen. And Gunner, taking a little more after Seonghwa than Mingi, had done what he could to help the boy through it and had become quite smitten with him. They had been too young to mate at the time, but there was no doubt that it would happen soon.

Trenton was incredibly shy though and hardly spoke to anyone. He had bonded with Gunner enough that he followed the alpha anywhere and would hide behind him if he grew too nervous or anxious.

And Seonghwa just adored him. As soon as he saw Trenton duck behind Gunner, he came over to hug his son and then pull the shy red-head into a bigger hug. The omega relaxed a little and allowed Seonghwa to coo over him for several minutes.

Trinity had also left her post and was now clinging to her brother's side, which made him beam while he wrapped an arm around her. She had grown so attached to her brother that she had a hard time whenever he wasn't around.

Rhodey also came over to see his brother as well, and Maria floated around between them.

Two different packs followed behind the couples. Jade's pack was five strong, but her father was ill. That was part of the reason Riley would be leaving. Jade's two siblings were both betas as well so there was no one to take over the pack.

Trenton's pack was much larger. They were made up of two different couples who had three kids a piece.

The backyard started to fill up quickly as everyone filed in.

A few minutes later, the last group arrived, led by Lizbeth and Lorelai. Behind them was their chosen alpha twins, Stefan and Serena.

They were almost ten years older than the girls and had been traveling together for a few years trying to find a place to settle down after their parents had passed away.

Stefan pulled Lizbeth into his side and waved at Hongjoong in greeting, while Serena twirled the shyer Lorelai in a circle. The alpha twins were both taller and had sun kissed blonde hair and freckled faces. They were a little rough around the edges, and when they first came by to share a meal with the family they had just intended on passing through.

But Lorelai and Lizbeth had worked their charms and now Hongjoong was prepared to offer Stefan and Serena a place in his pack if they wanted to join, or the twins could leave with them.

Wooyoung and San didn't like the thought of that, but he knew they would accept it if that was they choice they made.

Hongjoong made the rounds and greeted their guests, welcoming them to his home and begging them to eat because they had plenty of food to go around.

With the downfall of the Hunters, their kind was starting to thrive again. More and more packs were moving into the surrounding mountains, which meant that families were starting to grow as well. The only problem they had come across was trying to define territory lines.

No one dared step on Hongjoong's toes though. His territory line was never imposed on nor questioned.

It only made sense. With seven full grown alphas and three betas, they were easily the strongest pack in the area.

So he ended up becoming the one that others would come to if they needed advise or help resolving disputes.

He was happy to do it. His pack had seen enough pain and suffering to last a life time, and while he knew there was always the possibility that some could come again, Hongjoong would do everything he could to prevent it.

And now that their older kids were starting to bridge out and unite them with other packs, things could only get better.

As everyone gathered and sat down to eat, Hongjoong once more felt proud of everything he had built.

It was a safe haven for his family.

Where Mingi could still be his protective self and obsess over Seonghwa and Yunho could be his bouncy playful self with Jongho to try and get his alpha riled up.

Where San and Wooyoung could sneak off together to enjoy their special bond.

Where Yeosang could bask in the love of their large family.

And where their kids could grow to the fine young men and woman they were becoming. They could truly learn what it means to become an alpha, beta, or omega and find love without the pressure of rules or enemies.

"Dad?" Riley leaned over to him. "Are you ok?"

Hongjoong smiled and rubbed the back of his head. "Yes. I am. I couldn't be better."

The yard was filled with laughter and stories that lasted well into the evening when a large bonfire was lit.

The kids roasted marshmallows in the hot flames while the couples all settled down with each other to watch.

It was perfect. All of it.

And Hongjoong knew they had many more years of perfection yet to come in their little slice of paradise.

END.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for taking the time to read this series! It holds such a special place in my heart and I'm so happy I got to share it will all of you. Honestly, there was never supposed to be 3 books. My Way started to get really long, so I worked it out so I could write a sequel and I had every intention of ending it there. But then my readers on Wattpad kept asking for more, so after a lot of planning, I was able to surprise them with this one. It's really hard for me to leave this series behind, so I also created a one-shot book that will be posted here as well! 
> 
> If you have any thoughts, comments, or anything at all, please feel free to comment! I love reading all the comments for my stories, they are what keep me going as a writer <3
> 
> Also, follow me on Twitter @flamewhipper1 for any updates I may have! And if you enjoy my writing, I do have a ko-fi set up: ko-fi.com/flamewhipper. Any donations are seriously soooo appreciated. I'd like to make writing my career so any little bit helps!
> 
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> Again, thank you from the bottom of my heart and I love you all so much <3


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